The unromantic truth
+You know Haruhi wants be a career women she probably has no intention of ever getting married, And in this day and age it is not uncommon for a women to never marry or have kids. Can you imagine the hosts reaction? So unromantic. So to her dating would be a waste of time and a deterrent towards her goal of becoming a lawyer and we all know how much she wants to become a lawyer.+
"Haruhi" asked her young guest Mariko "do you ever think about marriage?" she asked with a blush.
"Not really" said Haruhi without to much thought before continuing "My goal in life is to become a successful lawyer, so I wont have time for a family, so I decided a long time ago to never get married." she said never noticing that the entire club was listening in now.
"Haru-chan" said Honey -sempai "don't you want kids someday?" he asked cutely.
"Honey- sempai" began Haruhi patiently "Kids take up a lot of time and work, time" she added "that could be put to better use working. And besides" she went on "I know so many childish people that I feel like I am raising them regardless." she finished to the shocked horror of the entire club and the nodded understanding of Kyoya.
"Haruhi surely you don't mean that" began Tamaki falteringly, why anyone wouldn't want a happy family was beyond him, though Kyoya looked like he understood her side of things.
"I do" she said bluntly "when I was still in elementary school and the teachers all asked us what we wanted to be they would give us strategies for the best way to do it, for many of us it meant no families." she said, but what she didn't say was that it was usually only the girls that were told that "I took it to heart and decided then to never have a family."
"What about casual dating" asked the twins simultaneously with smirks on their faces.
"Waste of time" said Haruhi in her painfully blunt manner making the twins face fault "the whole point of dating is marriage, so whats the point? Like I said you could be working instead."
Among the whispers of the club Haruhi calmly drank her tea, not at all concerned with everyone's reactions, to her it was a completely normal and logical solution.
"Haruhi" said Mori -sempai as he walked up to her "did your teachers really tell you that? That having a family would put an end to your career?" he asked concernedly, what exactly did they teach in those commoner schools? He wondered because this really made him worry for the future of the country, and it also explained why they were currently having a population crisis.
"Yes, they said it would be very difficult to balance both a career and a family so they recommended not having a family until after my career is over." she told him factually. "And by that time I will be to old for one."
"Haruhi -kohai" he began softly as if unsure where to go with this "What about the continuation of your line? Wouldn't your father want to be a grandfather?" he asked. "What of prosperity?"
"No one cares about that sort of thing anymore" she said "and besides I really wouldn't trust him with a kid."
"Um, yes they do care about it." disagreed Honey -sempai seriously "My dad would freak out if I didn't give him any grandchildren," he said much to the delight of the girls surrounding him "and I have a brother with the exact same expectation." he said amid sighs, though he left his opinion about Haruhi's father to himself, that man acted more like a child then him some days.
"Haruhi the only reason our families" he said indicating himself and Honey "are still around is because they married and had kids, even though there was constant fighting and warfare." he told her seriously.
"Ya" agreed Honey -sempai "literally the only reason either one of us are alive right now is because, despite our parents being busy with work, they got married and had kids." he said cheerfully.
"How many of you were raised by nannies?" she asked to the point "Or only had one parent work? Or both? That is not an option for most people." she informed them dryly.
"But Haruhi" asked her guest, Mariko "what if you fell in love?" she asked knowingly, after all who could say no if they fell in love?
"I don't know" Haruhi began slowly as if really thinking it over "I have never been in love and I don't have plans to. I suppose" she started to say as she got that beautiful dreamy look on her face "I would have to figure something out, but" she said before pausing "the person I marry would also be working, probably as much as I would." she said "So that person would be in the same boat as me and besides workplace romances don't always work out and then it gets awkward and your work could suffer as a result." she finished before adding "I suppose only true love could change my mind and that seems unlikely most days, but being around all of you lovely ladies make it bearable and worth any possible wait." she said making all of the girls sigh.
"For us we must carry on the line like our ancestors before and create an heir" Mori -sempai told her. "There must be someone to take our place when we die." he explained "Haruhi when you die who will take your place?" But before Haruhi could answer, she was interrupted by another host.
"Haruhi" said Kyoya speaking up "it's business and the continuation of it." he said by way of explanation.
"I don't have a business." she replied pointedly "So I don't have to do that at all if I don't want too." she informed them dryly. "Also" she continued "I don't know if any of you know this but in the commoner world people who use nannies instead of raising their own kid are often looked down upon." she informed them before going to make more tea.
"Haruhi -kohai" said Mori -sempai as he moved back to his table with Honey -sempai "Success and prosperity are only important to the family, no one else cares." he said as he bent over Honey -sempai to wipe off some frosting that he had gotten on his face, making some of the guests question if Mori -sempai shouldn't be re-designated the Family type.
As Haruhi walked home later that day she thought about the conversation at the Host club that afternoon. Why did everyone seem so disappointed? What did they expect? And why?
And possibly the weirdest part was that she didn't doubt for a minute that Mori -sempai would make a great father and husband. And why did he seem even more attractive because of it? She wondered about this as she took a shortcut through the park.
After walking for a few minutes she came across the play ground were a few young children were playing as their parents watched from the sidelines. She watched as a man bottle fed a small infant while watching a three year old play in the sandbox, he seemed tired but happy and content. And the young children seemed very happy, she got the strangest idea that just seeing them happy made him happy too. That wouldn't be so bad.
Maybe, she thought, if I found a good man whom I could love and loved me back and if he was willing to stay with the children while I worked then maybe, just maybe it could all work out. But he would need to be responsible, dependable, hard working, caring, loving and have plenty of integrity and honor to spare, but where was she going to find a man like that? A helpful, kind man, who wouldn't mind a bit of work now and then.
As much as she loved her father he could be very childish sometimes and she just didn't want to deal with that. So maturity was a must. And why was she even considering this to begin with? It wasn't like she would ever get married, it wasn't in the plan, and with that last thought she finally finished her walk home as her apartment building came into sight.
Completely without meaning to, Haruhi began to compare just about every guy she knew with her mental check list. Neither of the twins were mature enough or trust worthy for that matter, Tamaki -sempai wasn't responsible at all and he lacked maturity greatly, Kyoya -sempai would never raise a child himself and if he did she was afraid at how the child would turn out, Arai -kun just seemed okay and the same went for many of the other boys from her old middle school, Ritsu -san was also unlikely because she was afraid of what his family would teach any children and his family's ties would be bad for an aspiring lawyer, Honey -sempai would be more of a best friend then a parent, and Mori -sempai, she hesitated, besides the lack of speaking he would actually be ideal. How strange she thought, slightly bewildered by the thought it gave to her, the idea it brought out.
During club hours she found herself watching him, he was handsome that was for sure, he was responsible, mature, gentle, strong in multiple ways, quiet, kind and caring. And how capable he was of taking care of children was apparent whenever Honey -sempai was around. He required further watching. But the more she watched him take care of Honey -sempai, the more handsome he became, how odd.
After club finished for the day Haruhi found herself cornered by Honey -sempai.
"Haru-chan" said Honey -sempai in one of his serious moments "have cake with me" he requested as he ordered Mori -sempai away. "Strawberry?" he asked politely as he served her
"Honey -sempai what is this about?" she asked curiously as she sat down.
"Prosperity," he said getting straight to the point "Haruhi do you know why this school is co-ed, despite it being proven that co-ed schools often leads to distractions for the students?" he asked as he ate his piece of cake slowly, it was oddly horrifying to watch, more so then usual.
"Um, they wanted to be fair to both genders, and they're greedy" she answered slightly nervous of this new side of her sempai.
"No, but I suppose that does play a role." he said as he slowly put down his fork to give her his full attention. "the reason this school is co-ed is because they want us to marry. And to do that we need to date." he said seriously "Arranged marriages are a thing of the past and illegal, well more or less anyway. They are technically illegal, but if your parents tell you to do something you will do it, wont you?" he asked as he finished his first slice of cake and served himself another. "In the old days we didn't fall in love until after the marriage ceremony, marriage was often arranged to fulfill a duty to the family. Filial piety if you will." he said as he slowly devoured his second slice of cake "In this day and age, we date. But how do we know who we can or cannot date?" he queried "Our families are still very big on us finding someone 'suitable' you know."
"School, the other students." whispered Haruhi as understanding finally dawned across her overly logical mind.
"Correct" agreed Honey -sempai as he waved his fork full of cake regally, Haruhi was to afraid to touch hers. "School, and other connections if we have them. Takashi and I have already met a couple of girls at our martial arts tournaments, as have our brothers." he paused for a moment "Actually that's how Takashi's parents met, but that's besides the point. The point is we have to marry, we have to produce an heir, and if we are lucky we will like our future spouse. Haruhi I don't think you understand the luxury that is falling in love, of having an actual romance. Before marriage no less! You are taking it for granted." he informed her as he took another bite of cake. "We don't want a dead line, which is what you are proposing to do to yours, to become a dead line. A stopping of prosperity." he said as he ever so slowly ate another tiny bite of cake, this terrified Haruhi more then anything else.
"What does it matter? Where are you going with this?" Haruhi asked bravely considering the terrifying anomaly before her.
"I thought you wanted to be like your mother" said Honey -sempai decadently "isn't that why you want to become a lawyer?" he asked
"Yes, but what does that" she began
"Really Haruhi use your brain" snapped Honey -sempai interrupting her as he stopped eating to look at her straightly. "Your mother had you, didn't she?" he said pointedly "Did she regret that?" he asked "Did she regret taking a little time off from work to have you?!" asked Honey -sempai getting fired up "Did she seem happy or upset when you welcomed her home from work everyday?" he asked standing up and leaning over the table to make a point "Well, what was it?"
"Happy" Haruhi whispered as Honey sat back in his chair.
"It was the same with my parents when they came home from work, I still remember how much I loved it when dad would pick me up and throw me in the air." he said nostalgically "I loved it" he said getting back to the point "I want it, they want it for me" he told me "It's personal really. Haruhi You are your mother's prosperity, just as I am my mother's and father's prosperity." he stopped to shove the rest of his cake into his mouth, it was a token semblance of normalcy. "What was your mom's name?" he asked suddenly with his usual cheeriness.
"Kotoko" Haruhi whispered still a bit afraid of her sempai, there was nothing normal about eating cake slowly.
"Then can you imagine having a little daughter one day named Kotoko, and telling her about her grandma. What do you think your 'mother in heaven' would feel about that?" he asked before adding "Takashi and I were both named after our respective grandfathers, who died the year we were born. It was a car accident." he paused "We never knew them, but I can tell you so many stories about the man that's it's not even funny." he sighed as he sat back in his chair "Are you going to eat that?" he asked suddenly as he indicated her cake.
"No, you can have it." said Haruhi quickly.
"Thank you Haru-chan!" shrieked Honey -sempai happily as Mori -sempai returned from the errand he was given, of finding Usa-chan. "I hope I helped you understand what you have gotten yourself into by coming to this school." he whispered to her across the table as Mori -sempai drew ever nearer.
"Takashi tell Haru-chan about how your parents met!" he shrieked happily "it's so romantic." he swooned, just a little, as Mori -sempai handed him Usa-chan.
"My parents met at a kendo tournament." he said "Mom was a competitor, dad was a judge." he said in his usual manner before adding "Mom lost a point that was missed in the count, she told them about it, it cost her the win. Dad was impressed with her honesty and skill." he said before being interrupted.
"He also thought she was pretty" Honey -sempai added in.
"There was that also" admitted Mori -sempai "He asked her out on a date and they got married, and had my brother and I."
"Takashi forgot a detail" said Honey -sempai "His mom's father was a fisherman."
"What?" asked Haruhi surprised
"Dad insisted her skill and potential with a blade was enough to appease the family" Mori -sempai hesitated "he convinced Mitsukuni's grandfather to adopt her so that they could marry according to the old laws." he said as if daring me to say anything about it. "My grandmother once told me 'we marry potential, not perfection', I think she was referring to my mother when she said it." he admitted when he saw no judgment in her "My mother is her favorite in-law." he said with a small smile.
"Takashi's grandpa taught him how to use a mori" giggled Honey -sempai as Takashi suddenly got a blase look on his face.
"Wait Honey -sempai" Haruhi asked "are you telling me that Mori -sempai knows how to use a mori?"
"Yes" agreed Honey -sempai "I have photographic evidence" he said proudly much to Mori -sempai's consternation as he started waving a picture around. "I have even eaten the evidence." he added as Haruhi laughed. "It was a pretty good tuna" Honey -sempai added unnecessarily, though Haruhi did raise an eyebrow in appreciation.
"I'm sorry Mori -sempai" Haruhi finally said through her giggles "but finding out you know how to use a harpoon, and well your nickname" she said before falling into even more hapless giggles at the unintended pun.
"Yeah, But it's still getting old." he sighed tiredly as he looked toward the ceiling.
Honey smiled as he watched two of his favorite people get along, but it still didn't change the fact that Haruhi might never marry, and worse yet if she did, it might not be to one of them. He shook his head, as if they would ever let that happen he thought with a snort. It was a host or nothing, unfortunately it could very well be nothing he realized morosely, but at least she understands better now he decided as he hugged his soft and cute, pink bunny.