Maegaki ~ Foreword
Disclaimer: I do not own Ouran High School Host Club. It is copyrighted to Miss Hatori Bisco
Status: One-shot drabble, complete
THIS LOVE
The slight girl of four years raised her hands in defense against the taunting remarks and the physical assault dealt to her innocent little form, huddled by the wall. Beside her, two boys and a girl faithfully stayed by her side, their mocking words and cutting sneers too incongruous for their innocuous appearance. Truly, children can be cruel at times.
She tried bravely to stop from crying, a futile yet valiant attempt. She was a newcomer in this world; a foreigner. She wasn't accepted by these three, who judged who were acceptable and who were not. She was, bluntly put, an outcast. And the other children who would have helped her were powerless to do anything, their fear of the same treatment too consuming for their young wills to overcome.
She bit her lip, the only thing she could do, to stop from crying out loud as one boy pulled on her carefully braided hair. The sudden tug was painful in itself but what brought tears to her eyes was the falling of the ribbon that held her hair together to the ground. Her black tresses fell forward, an awful mess. It was more than enough. She stood up shakily and pushed the boy out of the way as she ran towards the bath room, towards the mirrors, where she could assess the damage done.
It was horrible. One side was still perfect, the other a tangled unruly mass of curls. Now, she couldn't go home this way and be seen in this condition! She momentarily panicked, before a light brown hand came up to tug on the other side as well, releasing the delicately fashioned strands into the same wild abandon the other side had succumbed to.
Head down, she walked back into the classroom, picking up her bag and walked outside where she knew the chauffer was waiting by now. But it wasn't who she was expecting to be there. Instead, it was him. Shyly, she walked towards the man, disgusted at how she looked like. But he asked no questions as he placed a semblance of order to her tangled locks, taking the ribbon in her hand and fashioning it into a headband.
He took her hand and led her to the waiting car, safely tucking her into the back seat. As he pulled away from the school, she saw him cast her a warm smile from the rearview mirror. She smiled back in return happily, meekly. She was glad no traces of tears could be found in her eyes or face. It was well worth the trouble of fighting against the bullies, refusing to succumb to their harsh statements and scathing insults.
After dinner, she was tucked into bed, her stuffed cat beside her. She snuggled into the now familiar smell; it was the first gift she had received from this house since she was taken it. She remembered the mind-numbing fear, the initial wariness, and then the gradual acceptance. She was still timid and shy, but she knew. She now had a place to call home.
She found herself unable to fall asleep. Loathe as she was to admit it, the words of the three children still rang in her ears, causing jolts of pain to tighten her chest. She needed comforting. She knew where to find that. Her cat in hand, she strode from her room, down the massive looming halls in search of that one room she would take solace in.
The door was ajar, bright light peeking out from within. She peered from the edge of the door, taking in the sight before her, relishing the scene unfolding. Yes, this was what she needed now.
The man who picked her up from school was bent over his computer, the rapid movements of his right hand followed by the cursor on the monitor was punctuated every now and then by the quick press against the keys. A frown lingered on his forehead until he finally gave a sigh of relief, obviously pleased with the result of his labor. She found herself echoing the sigh as well.
He stood up, stretching like a cat as he walked over the mini-counter at the corner of the room. He poured two cups of coffee and brought the other steamy mug to his companion who was still bent over his own work. He settled the mug on the waiting coaster as he cocked a head ever so slightly, bending forwards as he took in the sketches his partner were finishing. He reached out taking a pencil in hand. The other raised his head in silent question. He smiled in reply as he applied a few deft strokes on the drawing. The other smiled, finally understanding what he was suggesting. His partner added a few more strokes of his own and the man nodded in approval. It looked so much better with their combined revisions.
He smiled gently now at his companion, and leaned closer to press a kiss against his temple, his lips still curved into a secret smile. Suddenly he sensed they weren't alone. Lips still on the other's hair, he opened his eyes and saw her, finally.
She stiffened up, unsure of what to say. But she saw a hand reached out to her and she rushed forward happily to the two of them. The other one had also turned in his seat, bringing her into a tight hug. She was feeling sleepy now, and comforted, finally at peace, the pain from the afternoon already forgotten.
She felt herself lowered against the couch, where she was sure she would stay until the three of them would finally go to bed. She opened her eyes and peeked from underneath the stuffed cat hiding her face from the two men. She smiled when she saw the man run a hand through the other's hair as he returned back to his work, already energized by the coffee they had shared. She saw as their heads turned simultaneously towards each other to smile once more and in unison, their warm, gentle gazes landed on her, appearing to be asleep on the couch.
She knew how the world would not accept this. They tried to keep it from her. With the untainted views of a child, she was able to quickly surmise the truth that they wished to shield her from. But she saw nothing wrong with it at all. She remembered the three children who had bullied her constantly. She knew that one of them had half-siblings and that the other boy had divorced parents. She knew that the girl who was with them had a single mom who was an outcast in their society for running away with a man of lower social stature with her, only to beat her and steal her dowry. She knew they were embittered by their life and they hated her, an orphan from a foreign land, who was taken in by these two after her everyone in her family had passed away from disease, from poverty, from calamities. She was supposed to be all alone in the world, but now she wasn't because of these two. They were now her family.
She watched now as the other had gotten up, obviously finished with his own work. He moved to stand behind the man working by the computer slouching ever so slightly, his arms entwining about the slim shoulders, resting his chin against the shoulder. A lazy hand reached up to brush through his partner's hair, receiving a grunt of thanks in reply.
She closed her eyes now, almost asleep. Before she was finally claimed by her dreams her final thoughts of consciousness burned with an unadulterated certainty in her mind. This love - if it was not the right kind of love in the world and it was shunned and forbidden; then, what was?
Tsuishin ~ Postscript
Consider this as my stand against homophobia and at the same time a declaration of my one true pairing.
Flame me if you must. I. Just. Had. To. Write. This.
And behold! Here is another story to add to my "highly improbable works of fan fiction" list.