Kaoru's Barriers
Ever since the incident at the cabin, Kaoru had been constantly taken to doctors. His 'mild concussion' turning into more than anyone would have expected. His head had been rattled enough when tossed about the cave walls, that the doctors were talking now of minor brain damage. His days were filled with MRI's and CT scans, leaving little room for anything else. Not that he could complain much, for his speech was becoming hard to manage, stumbling over words that inwardly he knew, but his mouth found it hard to say.
Blood clot, now they were worried about that possibility. He couldn't even voice his fears and worries to his beloved twin, the lack of elaborate speech and the fact that Hikaru almost cried every time Kaoru looked at him, made their relationship sharply different. And he needed his brother so badly too, the fear of going under the knife frightened him badly, the thought bringing forth nightmares to the already traumatized Kaoru.
Hikaru was holding his hand the day his parents said they had made a decision. That he was going to have surgery, that the doctors were hopeful to remove any tissue that may have been damaged.
"Remove tissue? But what if they make him forget things? How can you be sure Kaoru will come back the same?" Hikaru argued on his twins behalf.
"He's already not the same Hikaru, look at him." His mother gestured at her son laying on the hospital bed. "It's the best option we have."
Hikaru kept arguing, but their parents were firm, leaving no room for debate. Before Kaoru was wheeled off to go into surgery, his brother hugged him, whispering in his ear that he loved him, that he'd be there when Kaoru came out. Kaoru wanted to be brave, to put on a determined face for his worried twin, but he couldn't. His tears were flowing as he gave Hikaru a look of complete and utter fear as the nurses wheeled him off.
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Kaoru...He had been on Haruhi's mind all day. Hika had called to tell her that Kaoru was headed into surgery, to have his brain jabbed and cut on. God the thought made her sick, imagining what scene was playing out as doctors and nurses tried fixing that poor boys head. She wanted to believe he'd be alright, but the scholar in her knew the facts. That many brain surgeries didn't go well. The human brain was delicate, even with technology today, doctors could still mess up a procedure.
Ranka tried cheering her up, bringing home romantic comedy movies to take her mind off things, to momentarily forget the boy she cared for. They sat together, her leg elevated on Ranka's lap as they watched the movies in silence. He'd rub her foot and ankle from time to time, watching her face more than the television, making sure she was alright emotionally. His daughter was a pro at hiding her feelings, when she should be more open to talking and expressing herself. It pained him to watch her mask, her face neutral as they watched what was suppose to be a funny romance.
"Honey, he's going to be okay." Ranka carefully spoke to her, receiving a raised brow from his daughter.
"Who?" She nonchalantly asked.
"That twin, Kaoru. He's going to be fine, Sweetie." He tried once again with reassurance.
"Lets just watch the movie please." She cooly replied back, turning her attention to the screen, her body tensing up.
"Sorry." Ranka apologized, rubbing her foot thoughtfully as he kept quiet for the rest of the film.
-0-0-
On the first day of school, Hikaru came to class alone, shocking everyone within the class as they bothered him with questions about Kaoru.
"He's resting. He'll return to class as soon as he can." Hikaru tried to put it simply, not wanting to get into why his twin was absent. He was lucky to have Haruhi in the same class, that alone feeling he was dreading without his twin by his side, ebbed a bit with her relieving presence. She'd sometimes glance his way, smiling kindly, other times she'd reach out and give a little squeeze to his hand, making the fan girls howl with joy. It wasn't for the fan girls, Hikaru knew she was perfectly sincere, that people chose to see it the way they wanted to.
During school, both knew they had to play it cool, their relationship somewhat a private matter still. Tamaki was about the only Host Club member to really know the truth, and he wasn't about to blab about Hika and Haruhi's passionate relationship he witness during break. Hikaru was positive that Tamaki still didn't accept the fact that Haruhi was with Hika, but all that wasn't a high priority right now. Hikaru had a lot on his mind, and Tamaki was in the loop on how Kaoru's health was. He'd hopefully not bother the couple with jealous comments, and realize that Hikaru needed compassion and understanding.
At the start of Host Club, Haruhi stayed nearby Hikaru as they catered to pretty girls needs. Serving tea and speaking charmingly to guests while also taking opportunities to glance at one another, sharing smiles. This discreet glancing didn't go unnoticed by all the ladies, some finding it sweet while others found it romantic.
The guests speaking with Hikaru were very polite towards him, possibly knowing he was sensitive about his twins absence, and bringing up topics that didn't involve his other half. As the guests slowly began to leave, the other hosts started gathering together, talking quietly amongst themselves until the final guest had left. Once they were all alone, Honey and Mori started asking about Kaoru's health. Honey doing most the talking while Mori stood by quietly, carefully observing Hikaru's tired, saddened face.
"He hasn't spoken to me. Since coming out of surgery. I don't know if it's because he doesn't want to, or that he can't physically speak. He hasn't spoken to anyone, just nods his head yes or no. They think they fixed his problem, but something happened..." He paused, everyone was listening in now. Haruhi was by his side, her hand reached out to hold his while he collected himself.
Tamaki and Kyoya stood the furthest from Hikaru, watching patiently as the boy regained his composure.
"During surgery, there was a problem. They pinched something inside his brain that caused Koaru to...he holds his left arm like this now." Hikaru showed them, placing his forearm close to his chest, his hand curled and limp looking.
Honey was in tears at seeing Hikaru's description, Mori was bent down, trying to console his blonde friend with a kind embrace. Everyone else was exceptionally silent, watching as Honey cried into Mori's strong, supportive shoulder.
"What about rehabilitation, or physical therapy?" Kyoya piped in, "Surly something can be done to improve his motor skills."
"We'll see. Kaoru's just so unresponsive. It's like, he's locked himself up inside his own world. A world without me in it..." Here Hikaru excused himself, leaving the music room to find some quiet place to let out his overwhelming emotions.
"Hika!" Haruhi went to follow, but was stopped by Tamaki.
"Senpai?!" She furrowed her brow and grumpily looked at him.
"Hikaru needs to calm himself, Haruhi. Let him be for a moment." Tamaki tried telling her.
"What he needs, is someone to listen and be there to support him!" She argued back, jerking from his hold and leaving the music room.
"Poor Kaoru!" Honey cried, hugging onto Mori as they looked out the door Haruhi had run out.
"Kaoru's going to need us, when he returns. I expect every one of you to treat him well and not point out his obvious disability. From the sound of it, he has a lot of healing to do." Kyoya spoke to everyone, eyeing Tamaki more than the others.
"Did you really think she'd let him go off on his own?" Kyoya lightly scoffed at Tamaki.
"Daddy's little girl is very rebellious!" Tamaki crossed his arms and began to pout, not looking at the face Kyoya was giving him.
"Keep telling yourself that." Kyoya sighed sarcastically. When would Tamaki realize his true reason for being overprotective over Haruhi?
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Disclaimer: Ouran Highschool Host Club doesn't belong to me.