Now that Yuki’s had a chance to air out his past (and confirm to the audience that his feelings for Tohru are purely platonic), we turn back to Kyo and Tohru, who are both kind of stressed out about the Cinderella play (amongst other things).

This is a rare occasion, so I hope we can put on a good show. Everyone’s working together. And we all owe a debt of gratitude to…

Ever the reliable brother.  Also, Mine is obviously pleased by Saki’s request for a pure black dress. Saki has an affinity for the strangest people…

Those two blew in like a storm…I know their attitudes take some getting used to, but we can’t let their good will go to waste.

The two biggest problems they’re having is that Tohru can’t even pretend to be mean (especially to Hana-chan) and Kyo has refused to attend rehearsals.

So the class writer proceeds to rewrite the script, and Tohru requests that she make the Prince easier for Kyo to play.  Yuki offers to look for Kyo so that Tohru can tell him the good news…and it turns out he’s just being a broody grumperpuss.

Anything he touches isn’t mine anymore. After he touched it, I don’t care about it anymore. I just don’t care.

Yuki: You’re like a little kid. What are you sitting here pouting for? Go back to the classroom. They’re waiting for you.

Kyo: I’m not pouting. […] I’m only here because you put me in a lousy mood in the first place.

Yuki: If that’s the case, you should take it up with me. Unless you enjoy making other people – making Honda-san – worry about you?

Kyo: Don’t talk about her!…Treating me like an imbecile when you don’t know the first thing about me! You had your mommy and daddy by your side, with everybody else fawning all over you, always telling you how important you are! Someone who’s always floated through life while the rest of us struggle in the mud could never understand the way I feel! You’ve lived your life like a pampered prince! You can’t possibly understand the feelings of somebody who could never have anything! You can’t understand what it’s like to stupidly keep wishing for something even when you know it’s hopeless! You’ll never –

That’s just how you want him to be, right? Because if you don’t have someone nasty to hate, you won’t know what to do.

Then he punches a window and stalks off.

Kyo still has plenty of demons from his own past to reckon with – his feelings toward his mother was only the first of many.

Mio: Your class is performing Cinderella, right? I’m looking forward to it! But I’m a little upset you’re not playing the Prince, senpai. Cause if we’re talking about the Prince, there’s no one more prince-like than Sohma-senpai! Don’t you think so too, Kuragi-san?

Machi: No, I don’t. I don’t think the President is like a prince at all.

Mio: Huh? Hey! Kuragi-san? Geez! She’s always like that! It’s like she’s looking down on everyone […]. Maybe she thinks saying weird things will get people’s attention. Don’t you hate people like that?

Machi seems to be picking up on Yuki’s own insecurities, maybe even trying to offer support in some strange fashion.  She obviously has trouble expressing herself, to put it mildly.

Meanwhile, Kyo finds Tohru waiting in the classroom alone.  Everyone else must have left after the script rewrite was finished, but she wanted to tell Kyo about it.

I wonder what she was thinking about while she sat here waiting for me all alone?

Kyo: Fine, you win. I give up. You better not laugh though, got it? Well. What do you say we call it a day? Come on.

Tohru’s too accustomed to playing “happy” to be any good at playing “mean”.

Until next time…