A troubled expression forms upon her face and Tamaki feels his heart drop. "Did I do something wrong? You don't seem as happy as I thought you'd be."

Haruhi grips her hands tightly into fists. "I don't know what's gotten into me lately."

Leaning down to kiss her, Tamaki grimaces as she twists away from him to avoid the kiss.

She stares at him with remorseful eyes. "I really love you and respect you, but I don't know if I'm in love with you anymore."

Tears slowly form in his eyes. "What're you trying to say?"

"I did some thinking while I was gone," she says, "I'm not sure how I feel about us anymore. I want to take a break for now."

Haruhi Fujioka stares down at her phone with a lack of interest as it buzzes wildly in her hand. Text messages keep flashing upon the screen in short intervals. All of them from Tamaki. Sighing, she silences her phone and shoves it in her pocket.

Sitting there on the plane, she prepares herself for what she's about to do. It had been a year since her and Tamaki had officially declared themselves a couple. Things had started out smoothly, with the both of them enjoying their time together. Love had been new to them, so of course everything they did was fun and exciting.

But, as the time for Haruhi to leave for America had drawn nearer and they started growing more comfortable in their relationship, things started to die down. Her heart didn't skip with every smile or glance; her skin didn't tingle as much as it used to with every kiss. The general euphoria died down and she had started seeing him again as she used to- her lovable idiot of a friend.

Exhaling slowly, Haruhi lays back in her seat and closes her eyes. She had been pondering whether it would be right to remain in the relationship in hopes that her feelings would come back or if it would be better if they took a break. Despite hating the idea of breaking his heart, she just couldn't stop thinking of the latter.

During her time in Boston, she had toyed with the idea of telling him over the phone and leaving it at that so she could return home to begin anew. However, guilt got the better of her quickly and she decided against it. It felt like a cowardly way to break up with someone. He was a good friend so it would be wrong of her to end their relationship in such an insulting way. Tamaki deserved better than that.

Her seat rattles and she flicks her eyes open, staring at her reflection in the window. Small worry lines stretch across her forehead, proof of the many sleepless nights she had spent thinking about her decision. Gathering her things, Haruhi reluctantly makes her way through the aisle towards the exit.

Cries of joy reach her ears as she spies a large crowd of family, friends, and classmates waiting for her at the end of the walkway. She catches sight of the older hosts, quickly averting her eyes as she see the happiness upon Tamaki's face; happiness that she knows she's about to erase.

"Oh, my baby girl, I missed you so much!" Ranka cries, picking his daughter up and swinging her through the air.

"I'm happy to be home, dad." She says, acknowledging the group of guests standing nearby.

Everyone greets her excitedly as they pull her into the center, exchanging hugs and pats with her. Standing off to the side, two identical brothers watch on with satisfied grins. Having spent a year without their toy, they were glad to have her back.

"Huru-chan, welcome home!" Honey giggles, pulling on her arm excitedly.

Beside him stands his fiancee, Reiko, a young girl he had begun dating while Haruhi was away in Boston. She nods in acknowledgment at Reiko who smiles bashfully before hiding her face behind her bangs. Taking a step back to turn to the others, Haruhi accidentally bumps into Mori who pats her on the head before messing up her hair in greeting. A feeling of contentment washes over her at his touch, reminding her of the old times and helping her relax for just a moment.

"I take it your studies went well, Haruhi?" comes the voice of Kyoya, bringing her back to the present. Turning around, Haruhi spots Kyoya standing beside a dog-like Tamaki who practically wags his tail with excitement.

Haruhi nods her head yes, to which Kyoya instantly pulls out a pocket notebook and begins jotting down something. Rolling her eyes at his actions, she turns to flash a smile of acknowledgment at Tamaki. His puppy dog eyes gloss over as he tries to hold back his tears of joy.

She pats him upon the shoulder as he tries to pull her into a half-hug, turning her attention to the others to delay facing him. Haruhi animatedly talks to some of the host club clients that came to see her, thanking them all for giving her a warm welcome. Her good friend Mei takes her by surprise and grabs her into a headlock, messing up her hair.

"Took ya long enough to come home." Mei barks at her before pulling away to hook her arm around the arm of a familiar red-head.

Haruhi's eyes open wide and she smirks at Mei knowingly, remembering that Mei had vaguely said something about dating a new guy. Kasanoda turns bright red from embarrassment and waves at Haruhi.

"H-hey, Haruhi," he mumbles, "welcome home."

"It's good to be home." Haruhi says with a smile, feeling Tamaki yanking at her arm for attention. She takes a deep breath and turns to face him, feeling anxious about what she needs to do.

With a heavy heart she gives him a half-hearted smile. "It's good to see you too, senpai. Mind if we talked alone?"

Tamaki sits upon the ground cuddling into the far corner. He hugs his knees as he rocks himself gently. His face bright red and tear-streaked, he doesn't seem to notice any of the people around him or the weird looks they give him.

Squeezing his knees for comfort, he replays his discussion with Haruhi in his head. He's glad that she still loves him and will always be his friend, but he wishes he knew what it was that made her decide to end things. As far as he knew, things were going great between them. What was it that changed and can he fix things between them or will everything be awkward from now on?

He lets out a shaky sigh, trying to compose himself after all the horrible sobbing he had done in front of Haruhi and the others. She had tried to comfort him, but he refused to face her and let her see him break down. He had to be strong for her. After all, it clearly took a lot out of her in order for her to tell him how she felt. That's why he had told her to take her time to figure out how she feels and to not worry about him, and that if she finds she still loves him then he will be there waiting for her.

Deep in thoughts of a future where he and Haruhi are together again, he doesn't seem to notice two identical boys approaching him.

"Found you, Boss!" They say in sync, taking a stand before him.

"Hey, Hikaru. Hey, Kaoru. Looks like you guys found me." Tamaki looks up at them with a small smile.

"Might wanna work on your hide 'n seek skills." Kaoru jokes.

Hikaru looks down at him and sighs. "Mind if we sit?"

Sharing a frown with each other, they hesitantly sit upon their knees on either side of Tamaki. The bathroom floor slightly repulses them as they try their best not to touch it. They adjust themselves, feeling awkward after having just reveled in the break up news not more than a few moments ago.

"We're happy you're home, Haruhi." Hikaru says, his brown bangs falling into his eyes as he looks down at her.

"Do you wanna talk about what just happened?" Kaoru says with a strained smile, "We're all ears."

Haruhi blinks up at them before slowly refusing them with a shake of her head. "I think I'm just gonna head home. It was great to see you guys, today. Thanks for the welcome."

Removing their hands from her shoulders, Haruhi quietly exhales as she makes her way over to the group of guests. Shaking hands and thanking them for making an appearance, she bids them goodbye before taking her leave. The group begins to disperse behind her, returning to wherever they came from.

The twins clasp each other's hands, watching as she walks away from them. Despite wanting to remain independent from each other, this new turn of events seems to have brought out old emotions in them. They find themselves clinging to one-another for support like they used to do in the past. Hikaru swallows a nervous knot as he watches Haruhi dash across the runway as if trying to escape. Beside him, Kaoru bites his lip as he watches their first love disappear into the airport.

The twins had tried their best not to eavesdrop on the conversation between Tamaki and Haruhi, but they couldn't help themselves. At the words "take a break", both of them felt their hearts constrict. They had once harbored deep feelings for Haruhi, but due to rejection and fear of losing one-another, they had kept their feelings in check. They still loved her and always would, but they never wanted to come between their friends. So, as good friends do, they supported them the best that they could, even at the expense of their own heartbreak.

Now that the two of them weren't together, it was hard for them not to think about the past. With Tamaki out of the picture, they both had a chance to try to win Haruhi over. But was it out of line for them to feel that way? Sure there wasn't anything wrong with them being happy to have a chance at being with the girl they love. However, the fact that it had come at the cost of both of their friends being heartbroken caused them to question whether they should even bother or just let the past remain the past.

Hikaru stares sideways at his brother and sighs as his heart starts to ache. Haruhi had told him they were always just going to be friends. Would it be worth it if he tried to pursue her or would it simply lead to heartbreak again? After all, there was no way he'd ever win against Tono.

Kaoru returns the stare, frowning as he notices the sadness on his brother's face. He harbored feelings for Haruhi, but had given up in order for his brother to pursue her. She had turned his brother down, which broke his heart more than him giving up on her had. He wouldn't mind trying to pursue her this time, but what would Hikaru think? And, would Haruhi even consider him or would she just go running back to Tamaki?

As they lose themselves to their thoughts, Kyoya approaches them and takes a stand in front of them. He pushes up his glasses and coughs firmly to get their attention.

"Are you two going to stand there staring at nothing all day or are you going to help us find Tamaki?" He says while glaring at them over his glasses "The break up is sad and all, but we cannot let that distract us from planning Haruhi's welcome back party for tomorrow."

"Oh. So, they are broken up." Kaoru mumbles out loud to himself.

"Where do you think he went?" Hikaru shakes his brother's shoulder, trying to bring him back to the present. Kaoru's eyes flutter rapidly and he pushes away his thoughts, turning his attention to Kyoya.

"Probably some corner where he can cultivate mushrooms and brood." Kyoya says as he crosses his arms against his chest impatiently. Honey, Mori, and Reiko head over to join the three of them.

"We should probably find Tama-Chan before he wanders off somewhere and gets lost." Honey says, which Reiko nods in agreement with. Kyoya clears his throat and claps his hands together, signalling for them all to head out.

"I guess you guys saw what happened, huh?" Tamaki mumbles, averting his eyes to the ground.

"We're really sorry it turned out that way." Hikaru says, scratching his head nervously as the air between them starts to grow awkward.

The three of them look anywhere but at each other, sitting in silence upon the bathroom floor.

Hikaru chews on his lip as he thinks about the day's events. Sitting there and trying to comfort Tamaki makes him feel like a two-timing bastard, seeing as he had just felt giddy about the breakup.

Kaoru crosses his hands upon his lap, his heart beating nervously in his chest. Seeing Tamaki crying makes him sad, but at the same time he was happy that he had a chance to go after Haruhi again. He lets out a quiet sigh, feeling like a bad friend.

The twins await a response as several men head in and out of the bathroom going about their own business. They flash the kids odd looks as they come and go. Tamaki notices this and smiles in amusement. He breaks the silence, chuckling quietly. Both boys draw their attention to him, shocked by his unexpected laughter.

"It's kinda funny that we're just lounging here in the bathroom, huh?" His eyes lighting up as he stares at his two friends.

"Not exactly the first thought that pops into my mind when I think of a party." Hikaru wisecracks, Kaoru and Tamaki joining in on his laughter.

The rumble of footsteps echoes into the room as the other hosts scramble into the bathroom, Reiko hesitantly hanging in the doorway.

"Hika-Chan, Kao-Chan; Good job finding him!" Honey says happily as he approaches the three kids, "You look happy, Tama-chan."

Tamaki smiles up at him. "I'm just glad to have people who still love me." He reaches up and rubs at his face, hiding his eyes behind his bangs.

"Don't be silly. You're loved by everyone." Honey retorts,"Even Haruhi still loves you. There are more ways to love someone than just romantically, you know?"

"We'll always love you, Boss." the twins say in sync, surprising themselves as they stand up beside him and offer him their hands. Tamaki accepts their help gladly, his legs shaking as he rights himself. He regains his balance and quickly throws his arms around both boys, hugging them tightly.

"Thank you for helping me feel better." He says quietly, "I know you're both still upset about me and Haruhi. It must be hard to stand me so I really appreciate it, guys." Hikaru and Kaoru swallow back nervous knots, nodding their heads as they hug their friend back. Regardless of what happens, they just can't ever bring themselves to hate him.

"It's good to see you're alive and well." Kyoya coughs, breaking up their moment. "Now that we have the break up out of the way, there is still the matter of Haruhi's welcome home party."

Tamaki's eyes open wide in remembrance and he pulls away from the two brothers. Pointing a finger in the air, he clears his throat. "Tomorrow we shall throw her the most spectacular welcome home party that'll bring tears to her eyes! And, if I'm lucky, she might even come running back to me!"

Hikaru rolls his eyes. "He sure got better, quickly."

"You know how Boss loves to plan..." Kaoru smirks in agreement.

"Then that settles it." Kyoya says, dusting himself off, "Hikaru, Kaoru; you two call Haruhi and invite her to the party. Leave the rest to me."

"What can I do to help?" Tamaki asks, smiling excitedly at Kyoya.

"I'll come over to your place tonight. We'll set everything up together." Kyoya says, smirking at him, "How does that sound?"

Tamaki nods his head as Kyoya snaps his fingers to dismiss the group.

Haruhi sighs as she unpacks her bags, glad to be away from everyone. Hopefully the rest of her night will be peaceful. After all the excitement of the afternoon, she could definitely use some relaxation and time to go over her thoughts before she'd have to face everyone, again.

Hoping Tamaki is taking things well, Haruhi folds up one of her sweaters and thinks back on everything that happened. Remembering all the different people who came to welcome her home really helps her to fight back the constant guilt that threatens to bubble up inside of her. Images of Tamaki's sad eyes flash in her mind and she shakes her head, trying to convince herself that what she had done was for the best.

She places her sweater into a drawer, jumping slightly as her ringtone interrupts the silence and her thoughts. Irked by the interruption, she grabs the phone and prays that it's not Tamaki. An involuntary smile spreads across her face as she spies Hikaru's name upon her screen.

"I wonder what he wants." She presses the answer icon and brings the phone to her ear. "Hey, Hikaru."

"How are you feeling, Haruhi?" He asks her as she takes a seat upon her bed and begins folding another sweater.

Haruhi frowns as she remembers all the trouble she had caused everyone while dealing with her feelings for Tamaki. She had especially put the twins through hell, but despite that they supported her and Tamaki. During the year she had spent in Boston, she never bothered to call them. She was sure they needed time to cope with everything and probably didn't want to talk to her. A full year had passed and she had kept in touch with everyone but her two supposed "best friends". It would be wrong of her to push her problems off on them now, let alone expect them to support her like they did back then. After all, she had broken their hearts in her pursuit for true love, only for things to wind up falling apart.

Forcing a smile upon her face, she decides to set aside her worries and lie. For the sake of everyone, it would be best if she kept her current feelings to herself. After all the stress her and Tamaki had caused the others, she felt it would be better to keep the breakup more private this time. Taking a deep breath, she responds to Hikaru.

"I'm doing fine, thanks for asking." She says with mock happiness in her voice.

A snort of irritation reaches her ear from Hikaru's side of the phone. "Hello?" She says, staring at her phone with confusion; quiet arguing can be heard in the background.

"Cut the crap, Haruhi, I know you're not okay." Hikaru barks. Haruhi becomes completely taken aback as Hikaru continues his little rant. "You just broke up with Tamaki. I'm sure you're heart broken so there's no need to pretend like nothing is wrong. We're you're friends. You can talk to us about your feelings if you want."

Small tears form in the corners of her eyes, finding herself touched by the fact that he and Kaoru still care for her even after everything she did to them.

Sniffling at the sincerity in his words, she quickly wipes her eyes. "Hika-"

"Just take your time, Haruhi." Hikaru cuts her off, "Don't push yourself to feel how you think others want you to feel. These things are hard to deal with." Hikaru's end of the line goes silent for a moment. He seems to let out a shaky breath before finishing his sentence. "...I would know."

Haruhi cringes with guilt, despite having a feeling that he would bring up the past. "Wow, Hikaru, you seem to have changed a lot." She comments, shocked by his demeanor. The phone makes some static noises and she checks to see if the call dropped.

"We went through a lot of changes after everything that happened." Kaoru says into the phone, bringing her attention back to the call, "You may have turned us down, which really hurt, but it was actually quite good for us."

A heaviness forms in Haruhi's chest. "I never meant to hurt you guys, I hope you know that."

Kaoru lets out a small chuckle. "It's fine now, Haruhi. Don't worry about it. We're just happy you kept us around, regardless of how you feel about us. It's thanks to you and Tono that we are the way we are now. Just know that we'll always support you, no matter what you choose to do in life."

Haruhi's heart skips a beat at his words, amazed by how well-behaved the two boys are acting. She smiles a little to herself, grateful for how supportive they're being despite the fact that she had ignored them for a year.

Hikaru's many past confessions and the kiss she had shared with Kaoru flash briefly in her mind and she frowns. How bad had she hurt them by refusing to take a chance on them?

"Haruhi, are you there?" comes the voice of Hikaru interrupting her thoughts.

"Sorry, I was just spacing." She shakes her head to clear her mind.

"Didn't mean to get us off track. Sorry, Haru." Hikaru says, "We were supposed to call you to invite you to a welcome home party tomorrow, not sit here and bring up the past."

A bright smile flashes upon Haruhi's face. "Of course I'll come."

"We'll see you tomorrow, then?" He says, "Need a ride? We can come get you if you do."

"I'll see you guys tomorrow." She says, "And, I'll definitely need a ride."

A jittery feeling starts to crawl into her hand as she holds the phone to her ear, nervously listening to Hikaru's wispy breaths on the other line. Talking to them had made her feel better and she just can't seem to bring herself to hang up the phone.

"...G'night, Haruhi." Hikaru lets out a sad sigh before he hangs up the phone.

Frowning at her contact picture of Hikaru, she decides that she needs to make things right with her friends again. After the party tomorrow, she would apologize to them all and hope that things will be normal again once they've discussed everything from the past to the present. A new year is about to begin. She can't run away from things like she did last time.

She sets her phone down upon the night stand and continues unpacking, excited for her welcome home celebration and to once again see her beloved friends.


"Polyamorous" (Haruhi x Tamaki/Hikaru/Kaoru) an AMV I made for this story on Youtube:

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