The noise was absolutely unbearable. The screaming was much too loud this time, and they had been arguing for over an hour and a half. A new record.

Finally, Olivia had had enough. She threw back the covers of her bed and stomped irritatedly to her door, throwing it open with a flourish.

"Hey!" the girl screeched over her parents' bickering. Silence settled thickly over the living room as her parents stared up at their daughter from where she stood, glaring over the railing down at them. Olivia's mother held the television remote halfway to her head, as if she were about to throw it, and her father's fingers were curled into white-knuckled fists. "We are inside," Olivia continued, smiling sweetly. "And, therefore, we are going to speak with our indoor voices. Goodnight mother, father." Without another word, she turned and marched back to her room, shutting the door behind her.

"Again?" Aki, Olivia's best friend, asked upon noticing her friend's exhausted expression and the dark bags drooping wearily under her dark brown eyes. Olivia nodded as they took their seats in first period literature, maneuvering their bulging yellow dresses—the school uniform—into their chairs.

"Started at ten and continued for an hour and a half. When I went out to tell them to stuff it, Mom had the TV remote and Dad looked ready to punch her."

Aki cringed. "It's getting worse, Liv."

"I know," the brunette groaned, running her fingers through the silver streak in her side-swept bangs. She closed her eyes and sighed. "But what am I supposed to do? I don't want them to split, but if this keeps up, I'm never going to get any sleep."

"It's only a matter of time before they start beating on each other," Aki pointed out, and Olivia glared at her friend through her fingers.

Before any more could be said on the matter, the bell rang and classroom chatter ceased as the teacher entered the room, smacking the chalkboard sternly to get his class's attention.

We'll talk later, Aki mouthed pointedly to her friend before turning her attention to the board. Olivia rolled her eyes.

Shoot me.

"Hello," someone said smoothly, sliding their arms around Olivia's neck in some sort of hug from behind.

The girl stiffened, frowning in irritation. "Not now, Hikaru. I have to get to lunch."

"Aw," he pouted, retracting his arms and moving to stand in front of her. "But you're my favorite person ever."

"Hikaru, your brother is your favorite person ever. Stop sucking up. Where is Kaoru, anyway?" Olivia asked, raising an eyebrow to emphasize her question. One red-headed twin was never seen without the other.

Hikaru shrugged. "I told him to go on ahead with Haruhi to lunch."

"And you aren't with them because..." Olivia began to trudge again towards the large cafeteria of Ouran High, Hikaru trailing along beside her with his hands stuffed into the pockets of his very expensive Ouran-regulation black slacks. She wished for the millionth time since the beginning of highschool that Aki had the same lunch period as her.

The boy increased his pace so he could walk backwards in front of Olivia. "I came to beg you again to come to the Host Club after school today." When the brunette stubbornly shook her head, he continued. "Please, Livi? You're like a part of the family. It would mean everything to Kaoru and I."

"'Kaoru and me'," Olivia corrected automatically.

Hikaru waved his hand dismissively. "Technicalities."

"You know how I feel about the Host Club and its ways, Hikaru. You know I'm not one of those girls that likes to waste her time fawning over guys that only play with my feelings the same way they play with every other girl's. I'm sorry, but that's just not the way I roll." And it was true, too. She had heard the gossip, the same five boys and the girl-undercover-as-a-boy every single time. It was sickening.

Hikaru groaned. "Come on, Liv, you know it's not like that. I've explained this so many times it's not even laughable anymore."

"And yet you've never managed to convince me. Remind me again what I get out of this?"

"You're worse then Kyoya sometimes," Hikaru muttered, glowering in irritation. "You get to have some fun with the boys that are practically your brothers, considering we let you stay over every time you get fed up with your parents."

Olivia sighed, but didn't bother arguing. It was true, of course. The Hitachiins lived within fifteen minutes' walking distance of her house, whereas Aki lived a good half-hour drive through Tokyo, in a modern condo in the middle of the busy city. Olivia had first become acquainted with the twins during a greeting from their family when she and her parents had first moved to Tokyo from their home in Hokkaido. Although Olivia was American in both looks and heritage, she had lived in Japan since she was very small, so she was much more accustomed to Japanese standards and culture, though she did have an appreciation for the English language, which she spoke fluently.

She had moved to Tokyo three years ago, the summer before sixth grade, and had been good friends with the Hitachiin twins since, though she had been closer with Aki since before then, because the girls had known each other since they were children. The friendship had originally been arranged by their parents so as to create a friendly alliance between the computer business run by Olivia's family and the general electronics business owned by Aki's family, but had since grown into a genuine friendship between the young girls.

The twins had been bugging at Olivia to come to the Host Club, the club of filthy rich young men who entertained filthy rich young women, after school since the beginning of this year when the club had been formed, but she had consistently refused.

"If I agree to go this one time," she said reluctantly, halting as they reached the doorway of the cafeteria, "will you stop pestering me about it?"

"Sure, if you agree to come this one time," Hikaru teased, smirking mischievously.

"Fine," Olivia hissed. "Now, if you don't mind, I am going to go find some form of caffeine to make sure I don't pass out before I can get home and take a nap."

Olivia frowned, knowing that Aki would be upset that she hadn't been alerted beforehand of her best friend's giving-in of the begging, as she sludged across Ouran's campus to the third Music Room.

"If they don't kill me, I'll probably commit suicide," she muttered, her freckled face radiating her reluctance to even be walking in this general direction. The parking lot—and her precious Daytona Blue Mercedes Benz SLS AMG Coupe—were almost exactly in the opposite direction.

Even though she'd never actually been there, Olivia knew exactly where Music Room Three was located, so that she could avoid it at all costs. Considering the vastness of Ouran High School's campus, though, this came as a great advantage, as the brunette reached the Music Room in under half the time it would take any other student who had, in fact, never even been in that building before.

When she reached the broad, intricately detailed doors of the Music Room, Olivia halted abruptly, her hands hovering over the door handles. This was not something she was sure she wanted to do.

Oh, grow up. You promised. It's just one day. You can do this, she thought sternly, forcing her hands down on to the door handles and pulling the giant slabs of synthetic wood open on their hinges.

"I'm sorry, the Host Club doesn't begin for another half hour," someone said politely. Olivia looked around, finally connecting the voice to Tamaki Suoh, a blond, half-French boy with vibrant indigo eyes and a very romantic personality. The majority of the Host Club's fangirls loved him best.

He must not be having a very good day, Olivia observed, if he's not all over me by now. She glanced around the room, accounting for all of the hosts, save for one: Haruhi Fujioka, the girl—posing secretly to the rest of the school outside of the Host Club as a boy—that Tamaki was unknowingly madly in love with. Her absence must have been what was keeping him down.

"The twins bugged me to come, so I came early," she said resiliently, spotting the two demons sprawled over two of the plush couches, fingers flying over the buttons of their Gameboys. "I hate you, you know," she said pointedly, plopping tiredly on to Hikaru's stomach. He didn't flinch at her extra weight—though, because of her small height and fast metabolism, she had never weighed over one-hundred-five pounds in her life—as she did this often.

Not removing his gaze from the intense boss fight, he replied, "You'll thank me later."

"Sure, sure," she said, waving her hand dismissively.

"Would you mind introducing your friend to us, boys?" Kyoya asked, glasses flashing as he typed away on his laptop in the corner a few feet away. Olivia snorted. As if he didn't already know who she was.

Kaoru spoke up, mirroring his brother and neither removing his eyes from his screen nor pausing his game. He spoke in a rehearsed monotone. "Guys, this is Olivia, close family friend and sister for all practical purposes. Hurt her and we'll kill you. Olivia, you know the guys."

And she did. Even though she had never formally met any of them, except for Haruhi, once, a few months back. The twins filled her in on all the club's daily drama, and she felt she knew each of the boys personally, though, with the Hitachiins, she really did know them personally. She had always been closer to Hikaru, though.

Olivia had already formed an opinion on each of the hosts, though she knew this was unfair providing that she had only actually met and conversed with Haruhi. Her belief was that Kyoya was a creepy son-of-a-bitch that would do anything for the promotion of his business—whether that be the Host Clubs or his family's—and seriously needed to get out more. Tamaki was annoying and needed to stop being so clingy; a psychologist would do him good. The twins, obviously, she got along well with. Hani, the small blond boy who carried a stuffed rabbit with him at all times, was a little overly sweet and innocent. He had to be plotting something. Mori, the tall, dark-haired, stoic boy was... well, just that. Tall, dark-haired, and stoic; he didn't talk much and therefore, not many people knew a whole lot about him, especially the twins. He wasn't mentioned often. And, finally, Haruhi.

Haruhi was awesome.

Olivia idolized Haruhi for her brilliance, straight-forwardness, kind and generous ways, and the ability to stand up for herself, those she cared about, and what was right.

"She knows us?" Hani asked curiously, tilting his head in confusion.

"These two practically provide a daily play-by-play on all your antics," Olivia shrugged, beginning to fidget uncomfortably in her uniform. "Um, do you guys mind if I use the changing rooms? I would really like to change out of this stupid uniform before I burst into flames."

Hikaru jerked his head in the direction of the rooms. "That way. Haruhi usually uses the second room on the right."

Olivia nodded and stood, slinging her sandy-brown messenger bag over her shoulder and making her way towards the changing room. A few minutes later, feeling much more free in shorts, a cream-colored tank, and a flowing navy-blue-and-white top, she emerged again from the small room.

Much better, she thought, twirling her silver streak and dropping right back down on to Hikaru's stomach.

"I have to get up in, like, two minutes," he informed her.

"Yeah? So? That's your problem."

He shrugged. "I guess, but you do know that your removal will not be any trouble at all."

Olivia grinned. "That's what you said last time."

"Yeah, Hikaru, she did get you pretty good with that peanut butter," Kaoru piped up from his place a few feet away. "It took your forever to get everything out of your hair."

Hikaru paused in his game to glare over at his brother. "It's not like you helped me out at all."

"Sorry, bro, I was too busy laughing at you."

"Thanks, dude."

"No problem."

"Boys," Tamaki interrupted in his sulky voice. "It's almost time for the Host Club to start and Haruhi isn't here yet."

"She probably got held up after class talking to the teacher or something," the twins harmonized, shutting off their games at the mention of the Host Club's opening.

"She is normally here on time, though... What do you think, Usa-chan?" Hani asked his rabbit, looking down at the stuffed animal in his arms. He waited for a moment before looking back up at the rest of the club members, informing them, "Usa-chan says she thinks Haru-chan's bag fell out the window again, into the fountains. She'll be here in a couple more seconds, 'kay, Tama-chan?" The small boy smiled charmingly, giggling a little.

The doors the the Music Room flew open not two moments later, revealing a panting, slightly-sweaty girl in the classic Ouran boy's uniform, the pant legs rolled up to her knees. In her hands dangled a pair of shiny black dress shoes; her feet were bare and covered in a slight sheen of water. Her dark brown hair was cropped short, causing her to look a little more masculine, but what gave her away, in Olivia's opinion, were her large, innocent brown eyes.

"See?" Hani said, hugging Usa-chan tightly to his chest as he smiled sweetly. "What did Usa-chan tell you?"