Family Ties

Kyoya's eyebrows shot up at her words and he looked over at her, a bit surprised with what she said. "Kimi and I can't really sit beside each other during movies. We tend to debate about what will happen throughout the movie more so than actual watching the movie when we sit near each other," he told her before shifting to lean against the counter, his eyes on her. "Either way, I'd still rather sit beside you, since you would be better company, in my opinion." He didn't elaborate on it and instead cleared his throat and glanced away, adjusting his glasses for a moment. A sigh soon escaped his lips before he returned his attention to her. "Unless you'd rather I didn't sit next to you?" He was a little worried that might be the case, but he sincerely hoped it wasn't.

---

Kimi offered a smile in response to Tamaki's words and she lifted her shoulders in a shrug. "Kyoya and I used to sneak and stay up late, watching horror films. That was back when he was fun," she explained, though the last bit was more of a joke than anything else. Kyoya could still be fun when he wanted to be, after all. It was just that he never wanted to be fun anymore due to being so interested in proving himself to their father. Once they got to the living room, she moved to the movie case. "Are there any specific kinds of horror movies you like? Creature features, slasher films, supernatural creepiness, things like that? Or, you know, there are those horror films that are more funny than they are scary."

Tamaki laughed along to Kimmie's jokes but when it came time for her question, he really had to think it over. In all honesty Tamaki really wanted to watch a funny scary movie, that way he wouldn't be afraid, but to go along and be supportive of Kyoya, he wanted to watch a scary scary movie, so Kyoya could maybe get on Hana's good side. To say he was conflicted was a severe understatement. Tamaki knew there was only one kind of movie that Hana was actually afraid of and that was a supernatural horror film with ghosts and possessions and whatnot. Tamaki's only problem was that he too was terribly afraid of them. Ultimately, he decided to take one for the team, "What kind of ghost scary movies do you have?"

---

Hana's lips couldn't help but smile fondly as Kyoya spoke of the troubling times between himself and Kimi when they watched movies together. She found the whole explination quite endearing, and to have his eyes solely focused on her as he spoke made her feel lighter than air. When he turned his eyes away, sighed and then turned his eyes back to ask if she'd prefer he didn't sit beside her, Hana immediately felt a rush of warmth flood to her cheeks as she turned her own wide violet eyes to him. "No," she spoke softy and tenderly placed a hand on the forearm that leaned against the counter. "No, I'd actually prefer it if you'd be beside me." Towards the end, with her nerves getting the best of her, Hana's cheeks lit up, her eyes escaped his and she withdrew her hand. "A-again, only if you would prefer it too.."

Kyoya wasn't sure if he should be amused that she was again mentioning on it being okay only if he preferred it. He was mostly curious, though, as to why she seemed so uncertain or nervous - he wasn't quite sure which frazzled emotion seemed more appropriate to explain it. Regardless, he nodded slightly. "Well, I prefer it as well," he assured her, his eyes focused on her. He was almost certain that he could see a blush, but he tried not to think about it. Why would she be blushing, after all. "At least, then, you won't have to be too afraid of the movie."

---

"Oh, the ghost movies that we have are generally just possession movies," Kimi explained with a shrug. "Or just haunting movies." She moved over to the case of movies, gesturing to them. Kyoya had gone about the tedious task of putting each movie in order according to genre, subgenre and alphabetical. So, she gestured to the general horror genre, then the ghost subgenre and pulled them out before offering them to him. "Go ahead an pick some."

@ momentai.

Tamaki gulped in fear as he looked at the titles and covers of the movies before him. One had a photo of a girl screaming and covered in some sort of black tar called Midnight's Revenge, the next one had a photo of a small boy playing with a dark silhouette of a tall man called Shadow See Shadow Do and the last one had the photo of a worn out teddy bear and was called The Unborn. Of the three the one with the bear looked the least intimidating so he pointed with his finger to it, "I pick this one."

---

"Right," smiled Hana in response to Kyoya's comment. Though, she wasn't worried in the slightest that she'd actually be afraid of whatever movie was chosen. Hana kept her faith that Tamaki would choose a certain type that she wasn't afraid of, since there was only one kind she was afraid of and it just so happened that it also scared the beans out of Tamaki.

---

Tamaki's voice chimed from the living room, "Yep! This is the one that we should watch!"

Hana perked up at hearing her brothers voice, happy to see what wimpy movie he had chosen. "Let's go see," she said happily and absentmindedly took hold of Kyoya's shirtsleeve, brushing their fingers together as she lightly pulled him along. "Oh, it a little teddy bear," sighed Hana cheerily. "It's so cute!"

Kyoya and Kimi exchanged a look at hearing Hana's cheerful mention of the teddy bear being cute. In Kimi's opinion, the movie was probably the more frightening of the three that they had, but she tried to avoid saying anything. Maybe it wouldn't be as scary to the others, but she wasn't sure.

"Well, then, if anybody wants popcorn while we're waiting for the cookies to finish cooling off, I could make some," Kyoya offered. It was usually his job to make sure that everything was ready at the club, all the treats and such, so he figured he could do the same in this case. Especially since he didn't want to have the guests do everything - that would definitely make himself and his sister seem rude and that wasn't something that he wanted Hana to think of him as.

Kimi blinked slowly at the suggestion before smiling. "Well, if we're going to have a group movie, we might as well go all out with it, hm?"

@ momentai.

Tamaki was relieved to hear Hana's comment about the cuteness of the teddy bear on the DVD cover of the movie called The Unborn. It made him feel like he at least wasn't the only one thinking this pick wouldn't be that scary. In response to Kyoya's comment Tamaki smiled, "Yeah popcorn would be great. Do you need some help?" As much as Tamaki would love to stay by Kimi, he really felt like he wasn't being much help in the whole set up process of this Suoh-Ootori Sibling Bonding Night. Tamaki stood up and patted Kyoya on the back, "Lead the way to the buttery goodness, my friend!"

---

Hana laughed along to her brother's usual hyper behavior, but when they walked away and back into the kitchen she turned worried eyes to Kimi. "I feel like I'm annoying Kyoya," she suddenly blurted. "I-I mean I asked him if he would sit by me, a-and he said yes but I don't know if he truly said it to be nice or because of other reasons..." The more Hana talked, the faster her words got and the harsher a whisper she seemed to get. When his efinally caught her breath she rushed out a final mumble, "And I know he's your brother and it's weird to talk about him with you but Idon'tknowwhattodo." The last few words came out as one big collection of noises, but Hana's wide, worried and slightly panicked eyes got the message across.

Kyoya nodded slowly to Tamaki's words, offering a glance towards Hana before he went to get the popcorn. "Do you prefer popcorn popped on the stove or in the microwave?" he asked, knowing it didn't matter much to either himself or Kimi. In the past, they had just gone along with whatever had been quicker, honestly, and he wasn't sure if Tamaki and Hana were the same in that concept. After all, it had mostly been because Kyoya was naturally impatient. "Or do you just not care as long as it's popped?"

---

Surprise filled Kimi's features, solely because of how quickly Hana had spoken. With a small smile, she held her hands up in a motion to signal her to slow down. "Hey, don't panic," she murmured gently. "If Kyoya didn't want to sit beside you, he wouldn't have agreed to it, trust me." Kyoya wasn't the type to be nice just for others' benefits, after all; he was only nice when it benefited him (at least, that was the case in Kimi's opinion.) "Don't worry, alright? If you were being annoying to him or anything like that, he wouldn't hesitate to tell you. He's a pretty blunt person when it comes to things like that."

@ momentai.
(wow. i am so sorry these are so short. i promise ill do better once the movie starts)

Tamaki shrugged and leaned on the counter between the microwave and the stove, "I didn't know it was an option, I always thought it could only be made on the stove..." He motioned to the microwave, "Does it taste different when you cook it in there?" Tamaki looked at the micrpwave with a bit of a suspicious glare in his eye, "I mean, how would that even work?"

---

Hana's worry only faded a little at the comfort Kimi tried to provide. "Yeah," she sighed though her tone wasn't very convincing. "I guess you're right... But I just can't help it. My insides feel like they're in knots, Kimi." Hana sat back and rubbed her face with her hands as if to try and wake herself up. "This is all so pointless," Hana finally sighed and dropped her hands sadly. "It's not as though something will happen, he's your older brother for goodness sakes." Hana turned disappointed eyes to look at her new best friend. "He's my brother's best friend and he's a member of the Host Club. I... I can't like him like this."

(Oh, don't worry, it's fine! Mine are pretty short, too, I'm sorry. D:)

Kyoya shrugged slightly in response to Tamaki's curiosity. "Kimi's usually the one who heats up things in the microwave," he said honestly. He preferred to take more time with it, to be more diligent and make sure that everything was in order. Kimi just put something in the microwave and waited for the timer to go off, which often left the popcorn burnt. "We'll just make it on the stove."

---

Kimi listened to her friend silently, honestly feeling a bit bad that she hadn't managed to cheer Hana up as much as she had hoped to. "If you like him that much, then it's not pointless," she assured her gently, offering a small smile and a subtle nod. "Just because he's my older brother doesn't mean that I wouldn't want you to be happy with him, if he in fact would make you happy."

@ momentai.
(oh my goodness this show Attack on Titan is killing me)

Tamaki nodded in agreement, "Alright with me, but do you want any help?" He blinked slowly as he watched Kyoya set up the stove and the popcorn to be cooked. Tamaki sighed as the sounds of the popcorn popping open slowly began to fill the kitchen's environment. "Kyoya, I want to warn you. This movie genre I've chosen... Me and Hana are potentially going to be seriously terrified... And I picked it for specifically that reason. Don't screw this up for yourself."

---

Hana looked at Kimi with soft eyes and a sigh, "Kimi you're too nice for your own good," sighed the confused violet-eyed girl. Hana pulled her long blonde hair around in her ponytail so she could run her fingers soothingly through the ends. "But... I guess only time will tell, huh?" Hana smiled softly to Kimi, thankful to have a friend like her. Hana sighed again and this time pushed her hair back over her shoulder before she picked up the movie case and looked at the teddy bear. "So, what's so scary about a stuffed teddy bear?"

Kyoya blinked slowly, turning his attention to Tamaki, surprise clear on his features. "I'm surprised you're going so far," he said honestly. His friend was going to risk being frightened just to help him. Perhaps he shouldn't be surprise, though; it was Tamaki, after all. Shaking his head, he turned his attention to the popcorn to keep an eye on it. "I suppose I should be thanking you, then."

---

Smiling, Kimi lifted her shoulders in a slight shrug. "Well, I can't spoil the movie," she teased her friend before she focused her attention back on the original topic. "So, you're going to sit beside Kyoya?" A grin filled her features then. "Are you going to cling onto him during the frightening parts?" She was teasing her friend, of course, all in good fun.

@ momentai.

Tamaki nodded once and kept his eyes down as he folded his hands into his pajama pockets. "You can thank me by never hurting my sister," he said seriously. "She's so innocent and fragile, even if she doesn't act like it. I'd hate for something to happen to her." He sighed, and ran a hand through his hair before he finally turned and smiled at his best friend. "Just be careful, okay? For both of your sakes. It's not just her heart on the line," whispered Tamaki softly.

---

Hana laughed at Kimi's sudden and blunt change of topic in response to Hana's own change in topic. "I guess I will. I'm happy he said he's okay with it." She turned smiling eyes to her friend, "You should sit on the other side of me, with Tamaki on the end, that way we won't cling together like we do at home when we watch scary movies." A blush crept onto Hana's cheeks as she imagined how the night might go, "That way it'll be okay if I get too scared and cling to Kyoya." Hana's mind wandered as she thought about the possibility of it all. Her eyes lit up in worry as soon as she imagined how afraid Tamaki might be though. "Kimi, will you cling to Tamaki even if you're not scared? I know he'll get scared just like me and I don't want him to feel alone..."

Kyoya blinked slowly upon hearing Tamaki's words and he turned his attention to his friend as he absorbed the blonde male's words. "I don't want to hurt your sister, Tamaki," he murmured and honesty was clear in his voice as he spoke, for he wanted to make his words clear to his friend. "You believe that, don't you?" He worried that his friend didn't trust him - not that he could blame him. He had a younger sister of his own, after all; he knew what it was like to feel protective of a younger sister. Sighing, he shook his thoughts away. "I will do all that I can to avoid upsetting Hana, Tamaki." Not that he was exceptionally good at that, but he would try his best.

---

A fierce blush fought its way onto Kimi's cheek after she heard Hana's mention of clinging to Tamaki. "Wh-What?" she asked, surprised with her own stutter. She didn't have anything against Tamaki, of course, but the thought of clinging to him made a nervous swirl of something she couldn't quite identify (she refused to think of the nervousness as butterflies) flutter in her stomach. "Are you sure that's such a good idea, though? Tamaki might think it's weird or something..." And she was surprised with how the sudden thought made her actually worry that she might come off as weird to Tamaki.

@ momentai.

"That's all I can ask for, I guess," sighed Tamaki in response to Kyoya's words. He smiled as the first kernel of popcorn made it delightful popping sound, "Ah, there we go. How much longer until its all done and ready for eating?" Tamaki was thankful for the easy change in conversation, he never like it when heavy topics stayed in the air for too long. Popcorn and chocolate chip cookies was an odd mix, he would admit that easily, but the bitter saltiness of the raw popcorn and the chocolaty goodness of the cookies were just what he and the rest of the group needed. Well, that and Tamaki would need to sleep with one eye open after they finished this wicked Teddy Bear themed movie that he had unfortunately chosen.

---

Hana frowned in confusion at the sight of the sudden and intense blush that filled up Kimi's usually fair face. She took her friend's hand in her own and begged, "Oh please, Kimi. Tamaki and I get terrified at stuff like this but we usually just have each other, and I pretend to be more afraid than him so he has an excuse to cling to someone. He won't think its weird at all, I promise." Hana heard the popcorn being to steadily pop and knew they were running out of time before he boys would be back. "You'll do it wont you? Please?"

Kyoya turned his attention to the microwave, taking note of the time that was left for it, and shrugged. "Anywhere from three to four minutes. It varies, which is why we have to keep an eye on it," he explained, knowing that he would have to keep an eye on the rate that the popcorn kernels popped. It was best to avoid burnt popcorn, after all; Kimi would no doubt tease him about it, since he often told her that she should keep an eye on whatever she decided to make as well.

---

Kimi chewed on her lip at the mention of it, but she soon nodded in response. "Okay, I'll do it," she decided quietly, trying to ignore the floating nervousness that still filled her. Hopefully, it would die down, but she wasn't too sure if that would actually happen for her. Since she was trying to ignore it, though, she offered a smile. "Have the cookies cooled down yet?"

@ momentai.

Tamale nodded, "Yeah we don't want burnt popcorn that's for sure." He watched it intently as the bag inside began to swell up in size. In it was he saw it as a metaphor for the budding relationship between his best friend and his sister. He knew that little moments, the kernels, would make the two of them slowly grow to like each other more and more until the bag was too swollen to pop anymore. He only hoped that the popcorn pieces of Hana and Kyoya's budding romance wouldn't be left in the microwave too long and burn.

---

Hana smiled in happiness and thankfulness at Kimi's words of agreement. "Thank you so much, Kimi. You're the best friend I could ever have." At her friend's mention of the cookies Hana's eyes turned to look at the plate full of delicious baked goods. "Hmm... I don't know, probably. I say we each test one out. Just to make sure they're save." The teasing tone in her voice gae Hana a childlike glow as she pulled two cookies from the plate and handed one over. "One for you and one for me, there's no where else I'd rather be, than right here so sim-ple-y, so one for you and one for me." Hana giggled at the sound of the old nursey song that she would sing whenever she and tamale would share snacks when they were children.

Kyoya nodded in agreement as he waited for the popcorn to finish. Once it did, he went ahead to pull it out and looked at it for a long moment. "I should probably put it in a bowl - or two, to make it easier to share," he decided as he went to grab bowls big enough for the popcorn. Upon retrieving them, he emptied the bag into the bowls, making sure to make it as even as he possibly could. And, he did a pretty good job at it, since he was usually vigilant about things like that. "What about drinks?"

---

Kimi grinned at the mention of it, rather happy to hear Hana's words. She hadn't really gotten to have many friends, so hearing that her new friend thought so highly of her made her rather grateful. Nodding, she went ahead to take the cookie that Hana offered and grinned. "Thanks," she mused happily before blinking at the rhyme. She hadn't ever heard it before, but she couldn't help but to giggle along with her friend as she took a bite of her cookie.

@ momentai.

Tamaki nodded along in agreement to splitting the popcorn into two bowls to make it easier for sharing. "Do you have water bottles? All this salty and sweet snacking will probably make us too thirsty to want juice or soda." Tamaki at least thought so, if they had sweet drinks on top of the sweet cookies there'd be too much sweetness. "Tell me where they are and I can get them, we've been making the girls wait long enough." He didn't want to wait too long and give himself a chance to back out from watching a scary movie and ruin the chance that Kyoya had with Hana.

---

Hana smiled to hear Kimi giggling back with her, the little rhyme was silly but it brought them closer as friends. She bit into her cooled cookie and a little sigh of bliss escaped her lips. It was cooled enough so that the chocolate didn't goop everywhere as she pulled a bite away but it was still warm enough that it was nice and soft in her mouth. "These turned out wonderful..."

Kyoya nodded slightly, gesturing to the fridge. "We should have some in the fridge," he assured, figuring that it was likely. Arching an eyebrow, he eyed his friend for a moment once he finished sorting the popcorn out. "Aside from the water bottles, we should be ready to get the movie started, right?" Well, as long as the cookies were cooled, that was, but he was sure it had been long enough.

---

Kimi smiled and nodded her agreement once she swallowed the bite she had been chewing on. "They really did," she mused happily as she turned her attention to the cookie. It was taking a bit of willpower not to chomp away at the cookie, both because of her sweet tooth and because of how good they were. "I could get a platter for the cookies?"

@ momentai.

Tamaki hummed his response to Kyoya as he grabbed four water bottles for each of them and found a pen lying on the kitchen counter and proceeded to write everyone's names on the paper labels of the bottles. "Yeah starting the movie soon is a good idea," mumbled Kyoya as he finished up writing the names and picked back up all of the bottles. He just wanted to get the scariness of the movie over with so he could try and sleep through his fear later on in the night.

---

Hana nodded, "Sure a platter sounds great! Do you want some help?" Hana finished her cookie in a somewhat unladilike manner but she didn't care because it wasn't like Kyoya had seen her stuff her face and the cookie was just so dang good, Hana just couldn't help herself. "I'm sure the boys will be back soon, and I'm sure Tamaki just wants to get this movie started soon so it'll be over soon," she laughed.