Author's note

Hello everyone, this story is going to be about Hana Yori No Dango and the struggles of Tsukushi to fit in the rich Eitoku Gakuen-school ruled by the F4. I have read the manga, anime and seen all the tv shows as well, so I will use whatever I can find in those series if it fits my story. However, I will use the manga the most.

Appearance-wise you can think of the cast of the Japanese Hana Yori no Dango or the manga-version; I used them both when thinking up a story-line.

WARNING (Spoiler-alert): Don't read any further if you haven't at least seen the first twelve episodes of Hana Yori Dango!

The story starts after Tsukushi gets confronted with pictures spread through Eitoku of her and Thomas sleeping together. As she is running from people trying to humiliate her for betraying Tsukasa, and old friend shows up to help her. Layla has returned from overseas and is here to see her, and immediately steps up to help her when Tsukushi needs someone badly during her struggles with the rich kids. She is not scared of anything, stubbornly bashing her way through all the fights that come their way, be it with words or fists. Strangely enough she also seems to know the F4 from way back, and Soujirou in particular. But will she be a big help to Tsukushi, or bring along problems that might make her life even more complicated?

As for the relationships in the story it will of course focus on Tsukushi and Tsukasa because they're so cute together, both in their clumsy ways. I won't leave Rui out ;-). I've also thought up a side-story for Akira, because I thought he was a pretty flat character in the series (definitely the tv-series). That also counts for Soujirou, in particular Soujirou :). I liked the general idea for his character (a player and at the same time interested in tea ceremonies) but I wondered why he was acting like that. I thought it would be interesting to have Layla play in role in that and see how it works out. You have been hearing the name Layla a lot already, but who she is and how she fits in the story exactly is something you'll need to find out. ;-)

Enjoy reading, Aislinn

'I'm the weed Tsukushi! I won't go down this easily!' She nearly screamed it out loud as she headbutted one of her classmates who had grasped her arm. He staggered back and swayed a little like he was drunk, his eyes turning in all directions. He then crashed in the thorny bushes on the side of the road. Theh, good for him, one down...how many to go?! There were just too much! At least eight guys were following her and she heard even more people screaming that they'd found her. Why did everyone care so much anyway? It wasn't even their goddamn-problem! She should just run all the way home for now. Yeah, home would be best, then she could wait until this storm had blown over...

No, she couldn't.

As she ran through the rose garden towards one of the many gates Eitoku had, she saw Tsukasa's face, looking at the pictures...she had to explain everything to him. As far as she knew nothing happened between her and Thomas. Not to mention he acted really weird when she confronted him about it. Nothing could have happened...

"Get her!"

"Make sure she doesn't leave the grounds!"

"We'll make her pay for what she did to Doumyouji!"

Aargh, why were all these people so dumb! It wasn't even their problem! "Just...leave me alone!" She stopped, turned around and kicked the one who was screaming the loudest in the face. Another guy got a fist in his stomach, but the third and fourth guy managed to grab her.

"Hold her down!"

"I'm trying, but she's hella strong!"

"Let go!" she shrieked so loud a few of them covered their ears against the sound.

"I'll get her," one of the guys who stood in front of her said and he punched her flat on her face.

"Aaargh!"

That hurted! That guy was punching for real! Another blow got her stomach and her knees wobbled, making her unable to stand by herself. Was this it? Would she ever get out of this?

"Tch, you think you're all that huh?" the guy said as he got closer to her and grabbed a strand of her hair. "While in reality you're just a poor girl who thought she could use Doumyouji-san for her own means. How terrible."

"You played around with that foreinger right?" another guy said and he ripped her shirt open. "Why don't you play with us too?"

"Yeah, I might even pay you for it," the first one said. "100 yen."

"You...bastard..." she gritted between her teeth, "don't talk as if you know anything!" She jerked her head back and then jammed it forward. The clash with his head was so loud the guys who held her shuddered. The guy grabbed his head with both hands and staggered back, moaning something not understandable.

"What the hell is this?"

She licked the blood from her split lip and looked up. This didn't sound like a guy. Were the girls now also going to mingle in it? But the girl who stood in front of her didn't seem to be interested in her. Instead she looked at the guys who held her and the guys around her. And they all just kept gawking at the girl, who was, without a doubt, someone you just had to keep looking at if she walked past. But she didn't walk past. She stood there in the middle of the small plaza with her legs firmly planted on the ground, her arms crossed in front of her chest, chewing gum and taking them in one at a time.

"This school... " the girl mumbled while chewing, "is pretty sick."

She blew a bubble of her gum, a light-pink colored ball which grew the size of half her face before it popped. She sucked the gum in again and gently slid her hand through her painted blonde hair. It was tied up in a short tail, with the ends sticking in all directions. A few clips decorated her bangs, and when she walked even closer to the group they could all hear the chain that swung at her belt. Tight dark pants, with high heels in the same color underneath. Above it a crop top the same color as her gum, with ruffles which fluttered in the light breeze. She took a few more steps and when another strong breeze rushed over the plaza it made her long black coat flutter as well.

"And this stuff you're doing right now...is making me puke," the girl said as she flapped her coat around as she turned. The white fluffy fur seam of that coat looked very real and expensive; was she perhaps a rich girl attending this school as well?

"Shit, who's that?" one of the guys said and he backed away a little, looking like he had no idea what to make of this situation. So the girl did not attend this school? None of the guys around her seemed to recognize her. The girl blew a bubble of gum again and let it plop before she started to chew again.

"Tsukushi-chan, I'll take care of this trash first, after that we can talk."

What? 'Tsukushi-chan?' There weren't many people who called her that... Whoah! The girl dashed forward, towards them, the sun illuminating her sunglasses for a second. The fur of the coat brushed her cheek slightly, and only then did she realize she didn't feel the hands of the two guys who were holding her anymore. She looked over her shoulder and could hardly believe her eyes. Wha...they were both on the ground?

Who was this girl?! She looked aside and gasped for air. Geh! Almost all of them were on the ground already! The girl held the last guy by his collar and looked down on him with a detestful look on her face.

"You," she said in a ice-cold tone of voice and the guy started to tremble.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I won't do it again!" he yelped like a defenseless child.

"Who asked you to do this?" Every syllable seemed to literally hit the guy as he winced with every word she spoke. Uwaah... talk about a presence. Who on earth was she?

"N-No one, no one!" he yelled panicked. "But because she slept with a foreinger even though she is going out with Doumyouji was something no one could forgive, so that's why..."

"That's why you had to follow one girl with eleven guys to beat her up?" the girl hissed. "Not to mention what you wanted to do to her... Are you all insane or what?!" The girl pushed him away and kicked him in his stomach so he smacked against the trashcan. "Trash should go in the trashcan," she said angry. "Let this be a lesson for you. If I catch you doing something like this again I'll personally kill you all."

"Yes...Ma'am..." the guy mumbled just before he lost consciousness.

"Don't worry, I didn't hit them too hard," the girl said as she walked towards her, her coat flapping around her. Gheh, would she be next?! It didn't seem like she would be able to beat this girl. But wait, the girl did beat up the other guys, so she couldn't be send by Doumyouji...

"It's been some time Tsukushi-chan," the girl said as she pulled her up.

"Eh, yeah," she said surprised, brushing the sticks and dirt from her skirt. The girl had a foreign accent. Ah! She couldn't be friends with Thomas now could she?! "Ehm, sorry for asking, but who are you?"

"Eh? You mean to say you can't remember me?" the girl said surprised. She took her sunglasses off and put them on her head. Bright green eyes stared back at her, curious and amazed. "Even though I was the one who taught you that headbutt? You disappoint me Tsukushi-chan."

Headbutt? But the only one she ever learned some martial arts from was...

"No way! You couldn't be...?! Layla?!"

The girl laughed and winked at her. That did the trick. That wink of hers she would recognize anywhere. Even though she was at least twenty centimetres bigger since the last time they saw each other, she had painted her hair and wore different clothes, that expression of hers would never change.

"Nice to see you again Tsukushi-chan, although you were in quite a pinch just now. Is it always like this?"

"Eh? Oh eh, about that...it's worse today," she said and she sank on her knees again. Ah, that's right! She had no time to be happy, the whole school would soon be after her again!

"Tell me," Layla said and she sat on her knees as well. "Tell me everything. I'll listen and think of a way to get you out of this mess."

"Layla...!" she said and she couldn't hold her tears any longer. "I'm so glad to see you again!" She fell in her arms and couldn't stop crying. It felt so good to have a friend by her side right now!

"Yoosh yoosh, now stop crying," Layla sighed as she patted her head. "That's not the Tsukushi-chan I know. You wouldn't get on your knees from just this now would you? Just tell me what happened, it doesn't matter how long it takes."

And so she told her everything. From the moment she entered this school and tried to stay quiet as she watched the F4 bully people whenever they wanted, to the moment she stood up for her friend and got bullied by them instead. She also told them how she ended up in their circle in a weird way and how Tsukasa and her were starting to get along better. And how it finally got destroyed by some pictures of her sleeping with a guy she'd only seen once before.

"Heh, so that's what has happened," Layla said with a deep frown in her forehead. She had listened to her without interrupting at all, and now she had told everything she felt empty. She had never been able to tell anyone everything, not even her parents or her friends. But now she'd told Layla everything she also felt a tiny bit relieved. To be able to tell someone her side of the story, and to someone who would believe her, did more good to her than she first thought. "But you sure have it though. You can't trust anyone in this school because they all want to use you for something. That's harsh. But you are sure you didn't do it?"

"No, I'm sure," she said and she crunched her dress between her hands. "When I confronted Thomas about it he backed away and didn't want to answer me. He told me it wasn't his idea. And it wasn't like Sakurako denied it when I confronted her about it. She just smiled and said things were going to get worse for me from now on. That was enough for me. Nothing had happened. Although things are really... really bad right now..."

"I see. And who do you want to tell your story the most right now?"

"What?"

"You hate it that everyone doesn't believe you and chases you around, but my guess is that you are afraid a few people, or someone in particular, may be disappointed in you."

"That is...!" she said and she felt she was blushing.

Layla grinned and winked again. "I thought so. It's that Doumyouji-guy isn't it? Hmm, so as long as he believes you it's okay? That should be solved easily enough. Come on, let's go back to school."

"What are you going to do?"

"Me? I'm not going to do anything," Layla said and she pulled her coat straight. "I will make sure you are able to tell that guy what really happened. If he believes you or not is up to him I guess. I just don't want anyone to get in the way. I'll kick them if that happens."