"And so, you guys met in a game," Gakushu echoed, his voice laced with a blend of disbelief and distrust.

The girl gave him a flirtatious wink as she twisted her lipgloss coated lips into a mischievous smile. "You got this one right, handsome," she shamelessly praised as she licked her upper lip and slightly fluttered her lashes.

The tip of Gakushu's ears turned crimson, and he had to stop himself from coughing before going back to his coffee.

On the other side, the girl seemed completely unperturbed as her look-alike grabbed her chin to turn her face. Brilliant dark brown met a pair of petulant purplish-brown eyes.

"Nuhu," the girl who grabbed the other's chin disapproved. "You can't look at him like that, Kaori, keep your eyes on me!" she whined, excessively. She pursed her lower lip out— unlike her sister there was no gloss or any other trace of makeup on her face, and puffed out her cheeks.

Kaori chuckled, completely forgetting about the strawberry blond boy she just teased. She snaked her arms around her sister's neck, bringing her closer and peppering her face with butterfly kisses. "Aww Hikari, you know that you're the only one for me," she sang happily.

This elicited a twitch of the older's lips before her pout twisted into a proud smirk. She gave the boy a contemptuous look, bringing her arms around her sister's waist and squeezing her tighter.

Haruhi merely rolled her eyes on the side, she picked up the teapot to pour herself another cup of tea, not forgetting to pour some to Tamaki by her side before she turned her attention away from those troublesome twins and to the younger boy. "Ignore them," she advised with a helpless smile, though the dotting light in her eyes was undeniable. "They're always like that," she smiled.

"Oh," because Gakushu didn't know how to answer otherwise.

"Aww, so mean Haruhi!" the twins refuted in a sing-song tone as they exaggeratedly pursed their lips at the girl.

"I thought you loved us," Hikari lamented as she nuzzled her sister's breasts with her cheek.

"The pain of one-sided love," Kaori mourned as she cradled her twin's head, her perfectly manicured fingers combing through the older's hair.

Karma who followed behind Mitsukuni as they entered the living room, each with a tray in hand, couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the ongoing commotion. "You've got some really interesting friends, Mitsukuni," he recognized as he put the tray with the tableware down.

Mitsukuni giggled, he laid the tray with the confectionary on the table before grabbing a knife. "Yep!" he beamed as he rolled the sleeves of his oversized yellow cardigan. With practiced ease, he began to cut the fruit tart.

There was a small genuine smile on Karma's lips as he observed Mitsukuni's reactions. Although he'd known the teen for most of his life, he rarely saw him so radiant. He couldn't help the budding joy in his chest— probably Mitsukuni's feelings were contagious, and brought a hand to casually ruffle the shorter's blond locks.

In the Kannazuki living room, almost all of the former Host Club was reunited. Only Kyoya and Takashi weren't present. Kyoya was somewhere, probably doing something shady— related or not to his work, and Takashi had some matters to attend with Karasuma. After all, the deadline for the assassination was getting closer, and they needed to be the most alert as government employees.

Sat around the table were the remaining Hosts and Gakushu. Today, as it was the weekend, they each wore some casual clothing. The twins— the oldest of the group, wore matching white tank tops and while one wore high-waist slim jeans, the other had on a high-waist black skirt that reached her mid-thighs. They both had a colored open long-sleeved shirt thrown over their shoulders. One was orange and the other blue.

From start to finish, the twins were either teasing the others or shamelessly flirting in a blatant display of affection. Overall, they reeked of PDA, it almost made one want to throw up, yet there was this magnetic attraction they exuded that didn't leave one indifferent.

Next to them was Mastuoka Haruhi, the girl from the Wakaba Park cram school. Karma hadn't expected her to know Mitsukuni, much less for the prince-wannabee, Tamaki to be part of the group. After all, the boy wasn't even ten yet.

Haruhi sported a brown pullover with a v-neck and a pair of casual jeans, and her long hair was tied in a high ponytail. She was the responsible one of this rowdy bunch and exuded a mature and reliable aura.

Then Tamaki was in some shorts, he had a white shirt tucked inside his pants and wore some knee-high white socks, the overall look made him seem like some little aristocrats. Add to that his attitude and aura, and Karma knew the boy wouldn't get out of his princely phase anytime soon.

Karma helped Mitsukuni distribute the slice of tarts as Haruhi passed along the forks and some more paper napkin. Noticing that his help wasn't needed anymore, he silently slid aside to sit next to the Gakushu. With undeniable familiarity, he reached for one of the unused teacups and poured himself some of the herbal brew Madame Kannazuki prepared for them beforehand.

Mitsukuni took a seat around the mahogany table before he carefully poured Reiko some tea. He didn't hand her a slice of the tart as she "was on a diet."

Taking a bit of her tart, Hikari snuggled into Kaori's side, a light hum slipping past her lips. "We should meet up with Mom and Mori-senpai next time," she told without much thought as she chewed on her fruity treat.

Haruhi hummed at those words, lightly nodding her head in approval. "I texted Kyoya-senpai but he told me he had some work to do," she explained as her eyes flicked to look at the twins.

"Oh the joy of adulthood," Kaori drawled with a despondent smirk.

There was a collective sigh from the former Hosts at those words. As people who already went through life once, they couldn't be clearer on what adulthood entailed, and while they gained some privileges, they also lost a lot in the process.

"What about Mori-senpai?" Tamaki queried in a juvenile voice as he dabbed his lips off the remaining herbal tea.

"Work too!" Mitsukuni chirped with a pout. He played with one of the fruits in his plate before plucking it with his fork and bringing it to his lips. "The project he's working on is reaching a turning point so he got requisitioned."

"Yay adulthood!" Hikari echoed her sister's previous words as she threw the last bits of her tart slice in her mouth.

Gakushu and Karma who listened on the side mutely mulled over their words. On one hand, they didn't know how to jump into the conversation, on the other, they didn't know who 'Mori-senpai' and 'Mom— probably 'Kyoya-senpai' were.

Well, both had an inkling that Mori-senpai was the man Mitsukuni frequently met up with after Summer break.

As for 'Kyoya-senpai', Gakushu had no recollection of meeting someone named so. After all, he never dropped by Mitsukuni's booth during the school festival, so he never got the chance to be introduced to this 'Mom'.

Karma cleared his throat. Unlike Gakushu, Karma knew Shimamori as he was his teacher and, in a way, mentor. He was also aware that his school "nurse," Oshiro-sensei was close to the agent, and it so happened that his first name was Kyoya.

Now that he thought about it when the twins stopped by their booth, they immediately hit it up with both his teachers and if his memory served him right, Oshiro-sensei told them he was going to join a Host booth for the festival with Shimamori-sensei. Coincidentally, his childhood friend was the one to propose the booth.

...

The problem was that he didn't see how the man would be referred to as 'Mom' in any possible way. After all, his most vivid impression on the male was the raven trying to kill his other teacher the moment they met.

"Excuse me but, is this 'Kyoya-senpai' you're speaking of Oshiro Kyoya perchance?" he asked with some suspicion. Maybe because he wasn't comfortable with them yet, and they were Mitsukuni's cherished friends, Karma carefully selected his words as he spoke.

Hikari beamed at him. "Yeah, do you know Mom?" she joked, a broad grin on her lips as she leaned over the table to take a closer look at Karma's face.

"Careful with your hair," Kaori rebutted as she pushed her sister back in her seat. "They are falling in your plate."

Hikari merely rolled her eyes but nevertheless complied without a word of complaint. In fact, the smile on her lips turned more genuine and the depth of her eyes filled with overflowing dependence and adoration.

Karma nodded, he gave the skeptical Gakushu a glance before answering. "He's my class' nurse," he explained.

Tamaki choked on his tea, leaving Haruhi to pat his back.

The twins chortled.

"A nurse—" Kaori began.

"Mom as a nurse—" Hikari seconded.

"How come I can't see that?" both finished before entering another laughing fit.

Haruhi who continued to soothe Tamaki's couching fit by rubbing his back gave a wry smile, a blend of confusion, and newfound understanding. "I never realized Kyoya-senpai liked children so much," she dryly said.

Tamaki who finally regained his breath looked up to stare at the redhead with vigilance. "Are you sure we're speaking of the same Kyoya?" he inquired with a frown on his roundish face.

Karma blinked. He felt slightly baffled at this unanimous evaluation of his stand-in nurse. His eyes slid to the calm Mitsukuni, well, Mitsukuni was aware of 3-E's situation and probably of Oshiro-sensei's real identity he mused.

"Tall, black hair, blue eyes, glasses and always carrying a notepad?" he described while lifting his fingers as he listed each point.

"Oh my God, his Kyoya also has a Death Note!"

"God save us it's not Mom's long lost brother!"

Haruhi gave the twin a deadpan as she swept her gaze over their melodramatic faces. She sighed, was about to confirm Karma's words when Tamaki spoke up, cutting her off.

"Wait! Do not despair yet, even if a second Demon King shall rise, we will vanquish!" he righteously claimed.

"Go, go, King!" the twins sang in agreement.

Mitsukunu laughed.

Haruhi soothed her incoming headache.

::

[February]

[Days before Target's implosion: 38 DAYS]

::

"Haaa? Honey-senpai's troubled over graduation?" Hikari drawled from her bed as she braided Kaori's hair.

Mitsukuni bashfully scratched his cheek, he brought Sweets closer to his chest, almost hiding behind her before nodding. The former Hosts were video calling, something they did once every week.

"Doesn't Kunugigaoka have an affiliated High School?" Haruhi questioned as she dried her hair with a towel. The girl just joined the chat a few minutes ago after showering.

"Haruhi! How could you show your figure to those people!" Tamaki cried— they guess he tightly held onto Matsukata's phone and shook it uncontrollably as the camera kept on going out of focus.

Haruhi rolled her eyes, she leaned closer to her computer, did some movements, and hummed. "Okay, you guys can go on," she smiled. There was no doubt that she muted Tamaki.

Tamaki easily guessed it and went into his emo-mode.

"King is such a slave for Haruhi," Kaori drawled with a laugh. Although they only saw her profile, they guessed she was mockingly smiling at his predicament.

"We feel the love~" Hikari concurred with a laugh.

The loud sigh was Kyoya. "You people have too much time to waste," he complained as he readjusted the rim of his glasses with his wrist. Unlike the (now) younger members of the group, Kyoya was still clad in a suit, there was no sign of tiredness on his face, and nothing hinted at him going to sleep any time soon.

Surprisingly enough, Takashi grunted in agreement.

Kaori snorted. She shared a look with her twin before the two stared at the camera. "Ew, adulthood~"

Haruhi smiled, she leaned down to move her cursor, and successfully muted the duo. "Sorry, Kyoya-senpai," she primly apologized as she reached out to grab her water glass out of the camera's frame.

Kyoya merely shook his head. "Sadly, I'm used to it," he confessed.

Haruhi dryly laughed before awkwardly clearing her throat. "Yeah, me too," she seconded in a low voice. She shook her head. "Anyway, Honey-senpai—"

It was in such fashion that Mitsukuni spent the first part of his night talking with the former Host Club.