"The best thing about me is you."
One day for some strange reason, Mori had said this to Hunny. It had been barely audible, but Hunny had heard it. It surprised him and in response Hunny looked up at his best friend with a questioning gaze, and tilted his head to the left slightly. His eyes held a worried expression as he asked him, "What did you say, Takashi?" His voice would have sounded cute to everyone else besides Mori, but he knew Hunny, and he could clearly hear the concern in his voice.
Mori managed to give a small, barely visible smile and answer him with one word. "Nothing." His answer was as short and deep voiced as they usually were, but it only made Hunny even more suspicious of him. He looked down at Hunny with a faint expression of uneasiness. Hunny noticed this and wondered what could have upset him like that. He knew that Takashi would never tell him if anything was wrong. He knew that Takashi had always been that way with him if it was ever about something pertaining to himself. Hunny knew that it was because Takashi didn't want to trouble him, but leaving him in the dark and not asking for help, and making him worried, seemed to trouble him so much more than just saying it out loud.
Hunny decided just to go on with the day and find out what was troubling him later.
A few hours later while Hunny was sitting with Mori in between clients, he asked in the cutest voice he could muster, "Hey, Takashi. What was it that you meant earlier?" He turned to Mori with an expectant gaze. Mori turned his dark eyes away from Hunny to the table across from them. He noticed that Hunny's plate from before still sat there, topped with his non-eaten strawberry cake. The fork laying down next to it, clean and still sparkling.
"Nothing, Mitskuni." His short reply did nothing to ease Hunny's worries. It had not helped that while he had said it, Mori had not even once looked into Hunny's eyes.
Hunny looked away from Mori to think over his answer. Nothing. Something would have to have been wrong for him to have said that earlier. "The best thing about me is you." Hunny had heard it, but could still not believe that Takashi would have uttered it. It just seemed like something that he would never say to him. Hunny then turned his gaze towards his piece of cake lying on the table. How he had wanted to eat it right then! To taste the sweet softness of the yellow cake and red strawberries… but now was not the time for cake. Takashi held a much more higher position than cake.
"You know Takashi…", Hunny paused during his sentence to give his bunny a squeeze, "I can tell when you are lying." He looked back over at Mori, watching for his reaction. He noticed how his body tensed lightly from his nerves. "It really doesn't make sense how you just keep it to yourself. Why don't you tell me? Surely everything will be better once you have let it out and besides, maybe it is something that I can help you with."
He tried to smile hugely at the end of his sentence, but it came out looking tired. It really hurt him how Mori would just keep his feelings to himself. Why couldn't Hunny hear his problems when all that he wanted was for Takashi to be happy?
Mori glanced over at Hunny's face, watching for any signs of understanding. He knew that his attempts at easing Hunny's worries had failed and that the issue was still bothering him. Everyone else in the club had been fooled by Hunny's tired smile, but Mori wasn't. He knew Hunny far well enough to know that he never gives up on something. That he would try his hardest to find out what was bothering him, even if he had to face him in combat to do so.
He gave a low sigh and reached over to put a hard hand onto Hunny's head. He moved his hand to lightly ruffle the blonde's locks. How could he keep this from his cousin? From his most precious person. The one who he was most loyal to. Mori pulled away his hand and said, "Because…", he spoke low, "without you… I am nothing." He looked over at Hunny for his reaction.
Hunny's eyes widened for a moment before a small, almost Mori-like smile came onto his face, for he knew exactly what Mori was talking about.
You see, in a couple of weeks they would be graduating. Mori and Hunny would be going to different colleges. Hunny was saddened at this, but he was able to get over it because they would both still have time together after school and on the weekends. Unfortunately, for Mori it was hitting him hard. The instances made him wonder: Where will I be without Mitskuni? For him it was a big deal.
Hunny turned his head toward his friend with a calm expression on his face. A ghost-like smile plastered between his rosy cheeks. His eyes were colored a dark chocolate, with a pinch of sadness mixed in, giving them a glossy look. Mori noticed the look in his eyes through his glance.
"Takashi", Hunny said giving his bunny a thoughtful squeeze, "Does this have anything to do with us graduating?" Once again his voice had been set to maximum cute levels.
Mori sighed knowing that as always, Mitskuni could see right through him. He knew that he might as well say it, even though he was a man of few words. "Yeah." His answer was slurred together with another small sigh.
Hunny gave a short chuckle to this and an almost amused look came to his eyes. His face looked weird, for it was scrunched up into a look of both grief and amusement. Slowly, the hold onto his bunny decreased as he glanced around the room, noting that the twins and Tamaki were once again fighting over Haruhi. He then saw Kyouya silently watching them from the sidelines, an almost invisible smile on his face. Hunny turned back to Mori and breathed in deeply.
"You should have told me earlier", he said to him, "If you had, then maybe I could have done something." He looked to his bunny with a mixture of feelings. "You know… it can't really be that bad. Being without me, I mean. Even I manage to annoy me sometimes." He tried to make a joke with his response.
"Takashi… you are so much better than me. You're quiet and a very good listener, you have very good patience skills, and… you have a brother that loves and idolizes you. You'll be fine without me there, and besides", a big smile came to his face, "You will still have to put up with me in the afternoons. Also, the weekends, too!"
Mori listened to Hunny's words and when he had quieted down, he turned towards Hunny. He saw the smile on Hunny's face and couldn't help the microscopic smile that appeared onto his own. It was so like Hunny to brighten up his days and make him smile. The older boy just had that type of personality.
With great speed, Hunny tossed his bunny into Mori's lap and said, "Now you take care of him, Takashi. Once college starts I will be wanting to see Bun-Bun in perfect condition as soon as we are both let out of class, got that?" He rose from his cushioned chair and took on a demanding pose. With his finger pointed towards him he asked, "Do you get that, Takashi?"
Mori's eyes widened slightly at Hunny's sudden mood change, before closing gently. His smile grew another centimeter as he brought his strong arms around Bun-Bun, who sat strewn across his lap. Mori gave a grunt in response to Hunny , as he gave it a tiny squeeze. Yes he had got it. Loud and clear.
Hunny put down his arm just as a loud scream erupted from behind him. The last clients for the day had arrived just in time to see the sight of Mori holding Hunny's Bun-Bun loosely in his arms. Every fan girl of them either passed out or had severe headaches from the sight. During this, Hunny and Mori both snuck a glance at one another, giving a secret smile so that the girls wouldn't see it.