a/n; Y-yes. I should be doing my challenges and stuff, but. Nah. XD I've a lot of TamaKao fics to upload, and..haha. This is one of them! A longer one, I may add. For my dearest Mercurial Flux, and you sure know why. You've already read this, but hey. Now other people who aren't as insane as I can as well. Never will own Ouran, I must...realize this. Oh well. I can at least own fic ideas.

Tamaki yearned for that tender smile, to see lips quiver in a flawless manner, producing the sweetest serenity. Yet, when the younger male seemed to abandon reality, seemed to forget his existence, his heart sank. For some reason, he couldn't bear the thought, couldn't even seem to acknowledge the other had something else to think about.

Wasn't he just as important?

---

Kaoru was the world. Tranquil, pure perfection, and the epitome of innocence, behind the scheming Devil eyes that mirrored his twin. Hikaru was everything Kaoru was not, and Tamaki realized. Sooner than later, he could mentally distinguish the two, but usually faked that he couldn't, just so that the devils could have fun and believing they could pull the wool over his eyes. When the twins laughed it all off, Hikaru rushing to prod at Haruhi, to see if he could make her even more agitated than she was already. (The Hitachiins had a bet going to see how mad they could make her.)

---

It was driving him insane.

---

Kyouya had notice his slight decline of interest in the female Host of the Club, seeing as Haruhi had cracked down on her studies, and wouldn't have any romance in her life, it appeared. Thus, Tamaki vowed he'd let the female be happy, and be over his subtle love. To everyone's astonishment, he wasn't harmed.

To his own astonishment, he found someone of more appeal. How could it be so possible? To believe, to lead himself to believe, that he loved a female more than anything? Subtle, it was. He was slightly dense in the manner, pretending he didn't have feelings for her, yet...he did. He knew. Tamaki knew everything, but pretended for everyone's sake, for everyone's enjoyment. A daughter, she was. A true daughter he may never have, and he was the exact replica of her own father. Everything had been resolved in his mind, and life went on.

---

It was a dream.

In a field of innocence, a field untouchable by anyone forbidden, he saw the other. Almost...just as untouchable as the intangible innocence, the abstract emotion that could only be sensed, a mere conjecture that it even existed. A breeze carried through, flowers bending with ease, and the redhead turning to look over his shoulder, that tender smile, that sweetest serenity he had longed for.

A soft hand was offered to the blonde, pink and red splattered gently against pale skin, the kind of blush Tamaki had knew Kaoru had used in his Act before. It was an Act, the curtains always drawing, and Kaoru always being watcher over his older sibling after.

He was so pleasant, it almost caused euphoria in Tamaki. It almost sent him mad with happiness to see the other smile in a natural way, in such a way he had never saw before. So at ease, so tranquil.

Kaoru was the sweetest serenity, and what hurt Tamaki the most, was that it was a mere figment of imagination. Something only his wishful thinking could conjure up at the spur of the moment.

---

In spring, Tamaki had realized it was the smallest, yet largest and most overlooked emotion in the world he was feeling. Cherry blossoms had bloomed, Kaoru admiring them by his lonesome, Hikaru talking to Kyouya about the prank that was 'not our fault'. Haruhi was busy discussing the change of seasons with Mori, and Hani was clinging to the male's arm as per usual.

Only the two were left alone, abandoned and only a short distance apart. The blush had settled against the older male's skin, soft and almost unnoticeable, a secret show of his emotion almost on his sleeve. He had attempted to be discreet, chatting uselessly with the other. Once, Kaoru had laughed. It had been...a soft sound, mouth over hand to hide it, a smile almost on his face. Not a true smile, yet almost one. Tamaki had felt his heart race as he attempted to make him laugh again, yet failed.

Tamaki reached for a branch with cherry blossoms on it, not thinking at the moment, just making a motion to distract himself. His fingers brushed against the petals, delicately as if the littlest of strength would rip it in half. A thoughtful grin traveled onto his lips, remembering the soft laugh.

In that simple moment, he heard it again, and felt a hand on his arm. It was a light feeling, gentle and familiar. Blinking his sapphire eyes, he turned to look. He saw golden-brown, then a gentle blush, the hand over his eyes as a soft sigh fell out of his lips. He...seems happy.

"You look like you're thinking of a lover," Kaoru whispered gently, withdrawing his hand at the moment. Tamaki had blushed crimson, shaking his head as he laughed nervously. The younger rolled his eyes, a hand on his own hip as he looked at the male with disbelieving eyes. There was a gentle silence following, Kaoru looking at the cherry blossoms Tamaki had brushed his fingers against, catching a glance of the blonde.

He smiled.

The tender smile he had hoped for was given. With that, Kaoru turned to walk off, to bother Haruhi with his identical twin. Yet, before he could shout out to signal his brother, Tamaki gently, and quite subconsciously, grabbed Kaoru's arm. In a whirl, Kaoru moved to look at the other, a shocked and embarrassed mixture written all over the blonde's features.

There were many things to be said, many things he wanted to say. In silence, Kaoru softened his perplexities, an almost knowing look as he gazed at the other.

"Spring is when love blooms," Tamaki blurted, offering a grin at Kaoru, who grinned back. Was it all it took? For him to smile, to receive it back? Never had he seen such a gentle grin on Kaoru's face, so genuine and real. All the times he faked happiness in front of his guests, all the times he acted by a script that was never written. To see something so real in front of his pretending eyes...was almost shocking. To realize all the times Kaoru had never said anything, yet said so much...

Without a thought, Tamaki pulled Kaoru close, arms wrapped around the younger. He didn't know why he had done it, why he wanted to have the younger in his arms for that minor second. Yet when he felt Kaoru wrap his own arms around him, he knew it was all right, everything was right in the world. Everything was all right with Kaoru, thus...the world was at ease.

It was the most innocent and sweetest serenity he knew he'd see more of.