So, this takes place somewhere in the middle of the series.
Summary: Haruhi has a heart necklace with a lock in the center of it. Tamaki wants to know who exactly has the key that opens the heart.
Rating: T for mild stalking
Reviews are welcomed and loved.
As Haruhi poured the hot water into the famous instant coffee Tamaki noticed the heart necklace that dangled from the girl's neck; a lock in the center of the gold trinket.
"Haruhi," Tamaki said, standing. The last customer had just left the room and the other members of the Host Club were changing back into their normal attire. "Where'd you get that necklace. I've never seen it before."
"Oh, this?" she looked down and held the little heart away from her to look down at it. "A friend gave it to me."
"What!" he shouted, suddenly changing into his fatherly character. "Does my little girl have a suitor? I will not stand for this-"
"Sempai," Haruhi interrupted. "It has nothing to do with you about who gave me this necklace."
"Does Haruhi have a boyfriend?" the twins asked, appearing behind the blubbering blonde.
"He isn't a boyfriend," she said with a small sigh. Tamaki took this well and stood up with a frown on his face. "Actually it's a complicated relationship." And the sempai fell back down in a white mist.
"Really?" both boys asked. "Is he a commoner like yourself?"
Haruhi glared at the doppelgangers in anger. "I just said it has nothing to do with Tamaki, what makes you think it has anything to do with you?" The boys still looked at her with expectation. She sighed and sat in a near by chair, rolling the heart in her fingers. "Actually I only wear it a few times a year, on special occasions."
"Haruhi," Kyoya asked, overhearing - eavesdropping - the situation. "Does this boy happen to be -"
"I have to go," she said, suddenly standing. "Sorry, sempai, you'll have to ask me your question later it seems." She grabbed her bag and marched out of the room without a backwards glance. Tamaki watched her go with narrowed eyes, trying to figure out exactly what had just happened.
"You know guys," he said. "I suddenly have to go to," and ran out of the room.
Tamaki watched as Haruhi walked along a road with shops on all ends. Usually he would have been fascinated with all of the commoner stores and booths but he had set his mind on a mission. Mission follow Haruhi and find out her secret. He would ignore the fact it could be considered stalking in some - all - parts of the world.
He watched as she wandered into a flower shop and came out a few minutes later holding a single flower. Who would want a single flower? Poor commoner folk, it's probably all she could afford! I know, I'll buy her a billion flowers later! Tamaki followed closely behind Haruhi for awhile - against all odds he was not caught. She seemed focused on her journey somewhere.
In the end he was surprised to follow her to the graveyard. His first thought was, her mother, but he knew where that grave was and it wasn't the direction she was headed. She wandered a bit before finally sitting down in front of one of the white graves with a smile; Tamaki hid behind a nearby tree and watched her.
"Sorry it took so long," she said out loud. "I had Host Club after school. I've told you about it, haven't I?" she laughed a little and he narrowed his eyes. Who exactly was in that grave? He slowly moved to hide behind the grave across the path. "You'd probably hate it, knowing you. You were always complaining about the people living in the huge mansions; though I did too."
Tamaki narrowed in on the name on the grave, and saw the name Kenzō Tanaka. Haruhi pulled a picture frame out of her bag and put it in front of the grave. It was a boy and a girl; obviously the girl was Haruhi at a younger age with long hair and the boy looked, maybe, a fifth year in elementary school. As Tamaki leaned forward he suddenly lost grip of the grave he was clutching to and fell forward, his arms hitting Haruhi's feet.
She looked backwards at the fallen blonde, startled and then surprised. "Sempai, what are you doing here?"
"I wanted to ask you who gave you the necklace again." He crawled forward and sat on his legs, hand in his lap. "It was him, wasn't it?"
Haruhi nodded and set the rose down next to the picture. "Yes, it was."
"Childhood friend, I'm guessing?"
"Yeah." It was silent for a second before she said, "Kenzō, this is Tamaki. I've told you about him too."
Tamaki kept his happiness silent and gazed at the picture, mainly watching the boy. "What happened?"
"Kenzō had always been sick," she said, gazing thoughtfully at the grave. "Some incurable decease that was said to take him before he got into his third year of elementary school - I had heard his parents talking once while we were playing hide and go seek." Tamaki nodded and watched the girl as Haruhi told her story. "But it never really sank in until the day my mother died. It was the day Kenzō promised to fight harder so I wouldn't have to cry over him." She smiled and sat backwards, crossing her legs - she was still wearing her uniform. "I fully believed that Kenzō wasn't going to die - that Kenzō couldn't die. I was so sure of it.
"He was my neighbor - the apartment a few down from mine. We grew up together so we always played together. It was usually just the two of us, everyone else were adults or elders with married children that had moved out. Kenzō and I were always telling our parents that we were going to get married when we got old enough. Both of my parents loved the idea, as did his. To tell you the truth he was probably my first love, though we never kissed or anything." Tamaki withheld his happiness that they hadn't.
"One day, in our second year of elementary, he had gotten very sick and had to stay in the hospital. It had happened on my birthday and I had decided to cancel the party to visit him. He was sad that I had but happy that I visited; it's also when he had given me the necklace. He had said 'this is to prove we're going to get married.' I had laughed and agreed with him because I was sure that it was true. We spent the rest of the day together."
"You loved him a lot."
"I did," she nodded with a smile. "And we were able to make it last until we started junior high. It was the first day and he was...jittery; like he couldn't rest. During school he asked me if I wanted to go to the new amusement park that had opened." She shook her head a little. "I had said no because there was a new recipe that I wanted to try out for my dad. I invited him over but he had shook his head. I had said maybe tomorrow," suddenly a tear rolled down her cheek, but still she smiled.
"He didn't have tomorrow." Her voice shook and Tamaki slowly put an arm around her shoulder. She didn't move. "And he was buried with the key necklace. I think my biggest regret was that I never kissed him..."
Tamaki wasn't sure how to respond so he sat in silence. Haruhi wiped the tears away. "I'm sure he regreted it too," he finally said.
She looked at him. "Not much help at comforting are you?"
"I suppose I could tell you that he'd want you to move on, but there really isn't any moving on. He'll always be part of you."
Haruhi nodded. "Yeah. He will."
The original characters were going to be Haruhi and Kyoya but I don't think Kyoya would do most of this. So I changed it to Tamaki. And I didn't really know how to end it. So the end! Reviews are welcomed and loved.
