Author's note: The song Tamaki is playing here is "Gymnopedie No. 1" (with a little dash above the first "e" that I don't know how to type). The artist is Erik Satie.
This story takes place immediately after the finale of OHSHC, hence the name of the chapter.
XX
Harui left the school festival late, skipping every few steps. Most of the other people had gone home, but Harui went inside and wandered the halls to get some time to herself when the girls started fawning over how adorable she looked cosplaying "as a girl." She couldn't believe that she was so happy at the prospect of staying in the Host Club. She used to dream of the day that her debt would be paid and her life wouldn't be consumed with annoying rich boys.
Sometimes she wondered if they wanted her to break that vase. What was such an obscenely expensive thing doing on that precarious stand in the middle of the room, anyway? Surely the twins would have broken it eventually without her help.
Now she couldn't picture not being in the Host Club, and it took almost losing Tamaki as a friend to realize that. The Host Club made her feel exhausted, a bit smothered, but so happy and loved at the same time. That was the same way Tamaki made people feel, so it made sense that he was the club's core. She remembered when she first met Tamaki; she kind of looked down on him. She felt a little guilty for immediately assuming he was just another shallow, conceited rich boy with no real problems. It perplexed her to see what a huge heart he had, and how he never seemed to look down on anyone like she initially had on him. Then she realized he was pretty similar to her father, which somehow made him more tolerable- still annoying, but a friend she wouldn't want to be without.
It was strange, but as she thought of Tamaki, she could hear piano music. It wafted through the halls and she stopped to listen. When she was sure it wasn't her imagination, she followed it. She was led to music room #3- no surprise there. The door was cracked and she slipped in to see Tamaki's profile, head hung over the keys, with the moon rising in the window behind him. The distant noise of the festival-goers still outside faded away as she listened to the slow waltz her Sempai played. It was beautiful, but full of sadness and longing. Parts of it will soft and sweet, but then it would fall into a deep, mournful harmony. She never took the time to think before that moment, how someone who portrayed himself as so frivolous and cheerful would choose to play such music.
She stood there and listened until her eyes clouded with tears. She wiped them away and stared at her hand like it had some alien liquid it. She wasn't the type to cry just from a song. The notes gradually softened until it was quiet, but Tamaki didn't stand or start playing another song. He just sat, staring straight ahead of him.
"Um, Sempai?" asked Harui cautiously.
She heard him gasp quietly and straighten his shoulders before he turned towards her. He smiled fondly and strode across the room.
"Harui, I didn't hear you come in. My apologies."
"No, it's fine. I'm sorry for barging in."
Suddenly Tamaki grabbed her cheeks and looked into her red, moist eyes "YOU'VE BEEN CRYING?! TELL DADDY WHO HURT YOU!"
"Sempai!"
"I BET IT WAS ONE OF THOSE RED-HAIRED DEVILS!"
"Sempai!" said Harui more loudly, clapping his arms until she got his attention, "No one hurt me. I-I was just really moved by your music."
"Oh," mumbled Tamaki. He stared at her with surprise, his cheeks red. She was expecting him to freak out about how sweet that was, or at least glomp onto her and snap a selfie on his phone to capture the moment, but he just offered his elbow out for her to take, "Thank you. May I have the pleasure of walking you home, my dear Harui?"
"Uh, sure," she placed her arm in his and they walked out onto the school grounds.
They didn't say a word for several minutes. Harui found it serene, but it was strange for her Sempai to be so quiet.
"Hey, Sempai?"
"Yes?"
"Why were you playing such a sad song?"
Tamaki strategically tossed his blond hair in the moonlight and said with his best host voice, "It's the sadness of the song that brings its beauty, and it is my duty as a host to be an expert in all things beautiful." Rose petals showered down behind him. Where did those always come from, anyway?
"Is that the only-"
"You know, I'm still adjusting to seeing you in that white, flowing dress. It's far better than any song. You look like an angel."
"Yeah, save the poetic pickup lines for our guests," deadpanned Harui.
"It wasn't a pickup line," said Tamaki a bit indignantly, "Do you think I'm insincere?"
If he asked her that a few months ago, she would have said yes immediately, but she studied him for a moment before saying with a smile, "No, you're just dramatic."
Tamaki gasped and jumped defensively, "Harui, how could you say such a thing about your dear father?!"
"Hey, calm down! I didn't say being dramatic was a bad thing! It's part of who you are!"
Tamaki straightened up and laughed, "I suppose it's not bad; I've been called worse!"
When he said that Harui's face fell. She remembered his grandmother brushing past him as she spat the words "filthy child" at him.
He stopped walking and placed his hands on Harui's shoulders, "Hey, cheer up. What's wrong?"
"Sempai, do you-" her voice cracked, "Do you wish I hadn't brought you back?"
"What? Harui, I-"
"Because it's not just the song that made me think you were sad," she continued and the words poured out, "It was how you looked when you were playing it. I'm sorry. I know it makes you worry when I'm reckless, and then I pull that stunt with the horse carriage and convince you to pass up the one chance you had to see your mother! I mean, we want to always be there for you, but it was wrong of us to assume you should have us instead of her! I didn't think about what you were giving up to stay; I was thinking about how you leaving would affect the Host Club- how it would affect me!" She hung her head and whispered, "It was selfish."
Tamaki stared at her, suddenly at a loss for words. Harui stood for a few seconds, not looking up at him. Her breath caught in her throat as Tamaki pulled her towards him and clutched the back of her dress.
She placed her hands on his shoulder blades and felt moist drops falling on her shoulders.
"Sempai?"
He coughed out a laugh and mumbled "And you always say I'm the one who's stupid."
She stood there and let him hug her, not really sure what else to do.
"You didn't convince me to do anything, Harui," he said softly into her neck, "You reminded me why I couldn't leave. I have a family here, and I have you."
He pulled away from Harui, lifting her chin up as he smiled, "I love you all dearly. I've spent years coping with the thought of never seeing my mother again; I'm guessing from the look on your face that they've told you my story?"
Harui nodded.
Tamaki continued, looking up into the distant night sky, "When the chance to see her again was dangled in front of me, I would have done anything to take it," he chuckled sadly and shook his head, "I dreamed foolishly for years that she would come to Japan, magically healthy again, and I could see her smile every day. I doubted how long Grandmother would even let me see her, even married to Eclair. If it was just for one visit, it would be better not to see her at all. I would have to break her heart again, and be married to someone I neither knew nor loved."
"Sempai-" Harui whispered.
"But by the time all that occurred to me the flight was booked, and I felt like I had to follow through, to be a good son."
"You don't feel like a good son?"
"I feel like I am what I am- a bastard," he sat on a bench nearby and looked away from her, his face red, "I'm sorry for using such crass language in front of you Harui. That was not how a gentleman would behave."
Harui sat down by him, "I don't care if you're a gentleman. I care that you're Tamaki."
He looked up with wide eyes, touched to hear his first name escape Harui's mouth.
"All your self-worth is tied up into being a gentleman. You think if you have enough charm, good looks, or class that your fathers' side of the family will accept you- like you have to make up for the circumstances you were born under? Well, I say if you have to put up that thick of a wall for them to respect you, then it's their loss, not yours."
Tears spilled over Tamaki's cheeks, but a broad smile spread across his face. He clutched Harui's hand and said, "I don't know what I would do without you and the Host Club, Harui. You truly are my family."
"Haha, you're never gonna stop calling yourself my father, are you?"
"Your father…" he said thoughtfully. "Today made me realize that I can confide in you more than a parent ever could in a child. When you let me hug you, I was scared- that I would never see my mom again, or that my father would never accept me. I wondered if it was how you felt when you hugged me coming out of that wardrobe."
"Well, I don't really think of myself as your daughter," truthfully she always thought it was weird that he called her that, "But you're right. Whatever we are, we're family."
She stood up and offered her arm out for Tamaki to take so that they could continue their stroll. However, there seemed to be a conveniently place rock behind her, which she of course tripped over, falling backwards.
"Harui!" shouted Tamaki as he lunged towards her. He caught her in a low dip, just before her head hit the concrete. He remained with his face inches from her, breathing hard.
"Thanks, Sempai."
"You need to stop putting yourself in danger, Harui. You're going to give your old man a heart attack."
"Yeah, ok."
He stood straight, but still held the back of her head protectively so their faces remained close. Harui shifted nervously. She'd seen enough movies to know what this pose was preemptive to.
"Umm,"
"Harui…" he pulled her closer and paused to be sure that she had the same inclination he did. His lips brushed hers, making them part slightly. She was a little curious as to what an intentional first kiss would be like. People seemed to make a big deal out of them.
"Hey, boss, what are you doing to our Harui!?" shouted the Hitachi twins in unison, popping from the bushes.
"GAHHH!" Tamaki jumped back, "Nothing, I just saved her from cracking her head open!"
"Yeah, and then you were gonna kiss her!" accused Hikaru, popping up on one side of Tamaki.
"GASP!"
"What kind of host takes advantage of a girl in a vulnerable situation like that?" asked Karou on the other side.
"GASP!"
"Guys, he wasn't taking advantage of-"
"OF COURSE I WASN'T ABOUT TO KISS HER! WHAT KIND OF SICK FATHER WOULD DO THAT?!"
"Ok, apparently we're not off the father-daughter thing," moaned Harui, although no one seemed to be listening to her.
"Oh yeah, you're sick, alright," said the twins.
"WELL THEN WHAT WERE YOU PERVERTS DOING SPYING IN THE BUSHES?!"
"We started looking for Harui…" started Karou.
"And then we heard you two talking. We couldn't understand, but it looked serious and we weren't going to interrupt…"
"Until we saw you about to deflower her with your lips…"
"WHAT-"
"Will you guys shut up?" yelled Hauri.
They all turned to her in shock. It was not often she raised her voice. "It's not a big deal, ok? My first kiss didn't turn out to be a big deal. Well- mainly because it was an accident and it was with a girl who was in love with the guy standing right next to us, but…"
"Yeah, it was pretty awkward," said Karou.
"My point is, after my kiss with her I was still the same person. Whether Sempai was trying to kiss me or not, I didn't feel threatened, so what's the big deal?"
The three boys all exchanged glances uneasily. If Sempai wasn't so embarrassed, she knew he would have used that as a flowery-monologue-opportunity about the sanctity of true love's first kiss.
"I mean, are you on that whole 'defending-my-honor' thing?" she asked, "That's nice of you, but I think I can cover that on my own."
The twins sighed, "Whatever," they turned to Tamaki, "it's good to have you back, boss."
"Hey, Harui, how about we walk you the rest of the way home?"
"WHAT?" shouted Tamaki. He watched in horror as the twins slung their arms around her.
"Yeah, the boss has had enough fun with you tonight," said Karou, tossing his hair aside and pecking Harui's cheek.
"Actually, I wouldn't mind going the rest of the way with them, Sempai. I wanted to talk with them, anyway."
Tamaki deflated like a balloon and retired back by the bench to grow mushrooms.
"Hey, don't be sad, Sempai," she kneeled down by him and whispered so that the twins couldn't hear, "Let's go to the carnival tomorrow. I heard it's in town."
Tamaki's eyes sparkled like a child's, "You mean the commoner tradition with the giant wheels and cotton candy and shifty but charming carnies?"
"You know it!"
Tamaki jumped up, danced away in a stream of dream-like sparkles, and sang "Ok-I-guess-I-can-let-you-two-walk-her-home-but-if-you-do-anything-naughty-I'll-hunt-you-dowwwwwn..."
As the Host Club's King glided away into the night, the twins and Harui walked off towards her neighborhood.
"So what did'ja wanna talk to us about, Harui?" harmonized the twins, leaning in with their hands behind her backs. They expected full disclosure about the almost-kiss, but Harui was thinking about something different.
"It's about Sempai's mother."
XX
Author's note: Yay, done! So, here are some things to expect from this story if you're interested:
It should be novella length. I will try my best to update at least once a week, but it may be more than that depending on how many people I feel are reading it (knowing people are anticipating the next chapter is a good motivator!). It's told in third person omniscient perspective. I don't do lemons, but I may do lemonade. I never do author's notes in the middle of the chapter, and the next chapters will probably have hardly any. This is my first OHSHC fic and Harui has become my favorite anime heroine EVER. Lastly, I'm friendly, so message me any time!