"Ow!" I squealed as a snowball hit me hard in the back of my head. I turned around to see Kaoru ducking behind an ice covered tree, laughing. "Oh, you are so dead!" I shouted running after him. I scooped up a handful of snow, packed it together then shot it straight at him. It hit him square on the side of his face. "Strike one for Mai!" I said, and burst out laughing as he fell over sideways into the snow.
"Someone's been hit in the head with one too many snowballs." A voice taunted from behind me. I turned to see Hikaru standing there a smile sweeping over his handsome features. He wore a navy blue button up coat and a red scarf was wrapped around his neck. His reddish hair was filled with snowflakes and his eyes danced in the sun.
"That was a bit harsh wasn't it?" I asked, still smiling.
"Nah, he deserved it." He draped an arm over my shoulders. "You up for some hot cocoa?"
"Yeah, always." I replied, wrapping my arm around his waist and walking with him up to the cabin. We got up to the dark mahogany door and Hikaru opened it for me.
"I'm gonna go get changed then I'll help you make the cocoa." I said, pulling off my black fuzzy ear muffs, gloves and red, buttoned up, wool coat.
"It's fine." Hikaru said, hanging up his coat and scarf on the elaborate silver swirled hangers beside the door. "I'll make it; you can just rest after your tiring day of work." He winked.
I laughed. "Thanks, Hikaru."
"No problem." He replied, walking into the kitchen. I kicked my fur lined black lace up boots off and jumped the stairs two at a time up to the room I was sharing with Akemi and Haruhi. It was a big room with one queen sized bed in it. We'd brought out an extra mattress which Haruhi had volunteered to sleep on. Our suit cases were all unpacked into the dresser in the room, all mixed up together, and so we'd just been wearing each other's clothes the past few days. It was quite funny actually. We'd all walk down stairs in the morning, take one look at each other and all say at the same time, "That's my shirt!" Then all start laughing.
Three days ago I'd announced that I was going to my winter cabin for Christmas break and I'd invited the host club and Akemi to come with me. They'd all agreed enthusiastically. Well... maybe most of them. I'm not even gonna go into Tamaki's speech on how it would be a great experience to live out in the wilderness for two weeks with no electricity or internet use, sleeping under the stars. I hadn't bothered to tell him that we had both electricity and internet (though there wasn't a computer at the cabin) and that we were actually going to sleep in real beds inside, not sleeping bags out in the snow. He'd been quite disappointed when we'd got here but he'd gotten over it quickly. The twin's response had been the typical Hitachiin answer. "Well, we've got nothing better to do. Sure, we'll come." But I'd known from the smiles on their faces that they really did want to come. Kyouya had agreed after Akemi had bugged him so much that he'd actually shouted at her. All she'd done was smirk and say, "I knew that it'd work." Hunny had giggled and said, "Sure, Mai-chan! It sounds like a lot of fun!" And of course, if Hunny had agreed then Mori would go with him. Haruhi had smiled and said, "Well, I'll ask my dad but I'd love to come." So Haruhi had asked and her dad had agreed and so they'd all come to my families winter cabin.
My parents had been busy so they hadn't come but they'd said they trusted me enough to take care of myself. I'd faked a smile and told them I would but in truth I felt like crying. I couldn't believe that my own parents couldn't even find the time to spend one day with their children.
"Mai?" Hikaru called up the stairs.
"Yeah?" I shouted back, opening a drawer and pulling out a pair of red plaid flannel pajama pants and slipping them on.
"Do you want marshmallows in your cocoa?" I heard a drawer opening down stairs.
"Yes please!" I said, slipping on a long sleeve black shirt.
"Kay..." He trailed off. I picked up my wet clothes from the floor, walked back down the stairs and into the living room. I walked over to the fireplace and hung my wet clothing by the fire.
Our winter cabin was a sturdy, cozy, two floored, log cabin. The first floor was just one, big room. The living room was right in the middle, with a fireplace that always held a crackling, warm fire. A big, soft, over stuffed dark, brown couch sat in front of the fireplace, surrounded by three more brown armchairs. A floor to ceiling window covered one wall and a comfy window seat, overlowing with multi-coloured pillows, sat beneath it. The kitchen was in one corner, with a stove, fridge and sink. Cupboards full of food filled a part of the wall above the sink and stove. A dining table with all sorts of chairs, every single one different, was placed off to one side. A pot overflowing with bright red poinsettias was in the center of the table. The whole cabin was hung, courtesy of Tamaki and the twins, with gold, silver, red and green tinsel. A huge green fir tree, elegant and tall, stood in the corner near the fireplace, decorated to the maximum with candy canes, sparkling snowflake ornaments, shining, metallic, balls and strings of golden lights. Every time someone walked by, they would take a candy cane the tree, but more just appeared.
"Mai-chan! Mai-chan!" Hunny cried, running over to me and looking up at me. He was dressed in green pajamas and had his bunny, Usa-chan, tucked under his arm. His small features looked concerned.
"What is it?" I asked, letting him pull me by the hand over to the window.
"Look there!" He said, pointing to Kaoru walking up to the cabin rubbing the side of his face, which was red and still plastered with the snowball. "Do you think Kaoru's okay?"
I started laughing. "Hunny, I threw that snowball at him. And yes, I think he's okay."
"Oh, why'd you throw a snowball at him?" I sat down next to him on the window seat.
"Cause' he threw one at me. I had to get my revenge." I smiled.
He laughed, cutely. "Oh, I get it. Thanks!" He said, skipping back to the chair where Mori was sitting. I shook my head, still smiling, that adorable little boy. I was still having a hard time believing the fact that he was older than me.
The door opened and Kaoru stumbled in. He looked at me and laughed at my satisfied face. "I'm not done with you yet." He said, pointing.
"Oh yeah? You look pretty defeated to me." I said, grinning and nodding my head towards the snowball on his face.
He rolled his eyes. "I'll get you later." He started pulling of his jacket and hat but I picked them up and threw them back into his face.
"Don't put them on the floor; hang them up near the fire." I said, smiling innocently.
He sighed. "I can never argue with that face. Why do you always have to look so angelic?"
"Because I am." I replied, walking over to where Haruhi was sitting on the fuzzy red carpet, leaning against the couch.
"No you're not. You're a little devil." He said, walking up the stairs to the room he and Hikaru were sharing. Mori, Hunny and Tamaki were sharing a room too, though originally Tamaki and Kyouya were supposed to share. But Tamaki had freaked out when Kyouya had woken up and yelled at him for being too loud and Tamaki had dragged his mattress into the other room. Kyouya had been happy about that and now woke up at 10:30 every day, unless Akemi came in and dragged him out of bed.
"Kaoru, don't you be talking." Hikaru called from the kitchen.
"I'm not the one who dropped a spider on her head." he said, smiling.
"Well, I'm not the one who got the idea in the first place." They had these mock fights regularly. But you could tell they were having fun with it.
"Touché." Hikaru replied. "But you still shouldn't insult the most beautiful girl in the world."
I sank down onto the couch, pulling a navy blanket around my shoulders. I smiled at Hikaru in the kitchen. "Cheesy."
"You love it." He reminded me, popping a marshmallow into his mouth.
"You're right." I held up a hand. "Throw me one, Hikaru."
"If it falls on the floor you're eating it." He said, picking one up. He tossed it to me and I caught the marshmallow in my open mouth. I looked at him and raised an eyebrow.
"The floor, huh?" I said, swallowing it.
"Show-off." He retorted, smiling. "Cocoas ready." He called to the others, carrying out a tray full of nine mugs of cocoa. He set the tray down on one of the coffee tables. Everyone swarmed around the tray and when they all sat back down only three mugs were left.
"Where are Kyouya, Akemi and Tamaki?" I asked, staring out the window and blowing on my hot chocolate. I sat down on the couch next to Hikaru and he put his arm around me, pulling me closer to him. I rested my head on his chest.
"Um... last I heard Tamaki was off yelling at Kyouya and Akemi for kissing in public." Hikaru said, smiling.
I laughed. "But were the only ones around for miles."
Hikaru shook his head. "Well, you know Tamaki."
"Yeah, the idiot." I muttered, making Hikaru laugh quietly. I looked out the window again to see Kyouya and Akemi walking up through the snow their cheeks rosy red from the cold, Kyouya's glasses were crooked on his nose, Akemi's hair had snow stuck into it and their hands were clasped together. Tamaki was walking behind them yelling so loudly that you could here it inside the cabin. The two of them were obviously ignoring him but I could see the look of frustration and annoyance on both of their faces.
"WHY WERE YOU GUYS DOING THAT?" He shouted at them, making everyone in the cabin cringe in sympathy for Kyouya and Akemi. They just continued to ignore him until they got to the door. They opened it and slammed it shut before Tamaki could get in. They leaned against the door so as to keep it shut and Akemi bolted the lock.
"God, I thought it would never end." She said, hanging up her coat next to Kyouya's.
Just then Tamaki stomped in through the back door still yelling. He turned to us as Akemi and Kyouya both sighed angrily. "CAN YOU BELIEVE THEM?" He threw his coat down on the floor and Akemi slowly picked it up and threw it out the door into the snow. I stifled my laughter in Hikaru's sleeve. "THEY WERE KISSING!" He paused and when none of us said anything he added, "IN PUBLIC!"
"Yeah, Tamaki," Akemi said, "That's what couples tend to do. Kiss... in public..."
"At least Kyouya has a girlfriend, Tamaki. You probably couldn't get one if your life depended on it." I pointed out to him.
Akemi started cracking up, laughing. "I'm gonna..." Laugh "...go get..." Laugh "...changed." Kyouya just chuckled and slid his glasses back into place. "And if anyone touches my cocoa I'll kill them. With that carving knife." She nodded her head towards the huge knife laying on the kitchen counter.
Kaoru moved his hand slowly away from her mug of cocoa and cleared his throat. "Yeah. I thought so." Akemi said and ran up the stairs. Hikaru and I both burst out laughing at Kaoru's reaction. Tamaki sat down dramatically on the window seat and stared out the window.
Kyouya sat down on the blue loveseat across from Hikaru and I. "That sounded brutal." I commented.
He leaned his head back. "Oh, it was. But it was quite amusing actually."
"Only you would think that, Kyouya." I replied, laughing.
He picked up his cocoa. "Akemi?" He called up the stairs.
"What?" She shouted back.
"When you come down, bring my black sweater, will you?"
"Which one? Every single sweater you have is black."
"The one..." He sighed. "Just one of them, okay?"
"Fine. But next time I ask you for something you're getting it."
"Deal." He replied. "Maybe. It depends what you ask for."
"You know what, Kyouya?" She said, walking down the stairs, dressed in a pair of my purple pajama pants and a grey hoodie.
"Yes?" He asked.
"I hate you so much." She threw his black sweater at his face and he smiled and slipped it on.
"I love you though." He replied, pulling her onto the couch next to him. She kissed him on the cheek.
"I hate to love you; love to hate you." She sighed, happily. "But mostly I love to love you."
"You are so confusing sometimes." Kyouya replied, chuckling.
"I know. I honestly don't get how you can understand her." I said, curling up into my boyfriend, my head in between Hikaru's neck and shoulder, my fingers tapping his knee.
"Mai, are you playing guitar chords on my knee again?" Hikaru asked, entwining his fingers with mine to stop me tapping.
I looked up at him, sleepily. "No, actually I was spelling out 'I love you' in Morse code on your knee again. Let me finish." He leaned his head on top of mine laughing his amazing laugh.
"You're adorable."
"I could spell out 'I hate you' instead, if you wanted." I replied, ruffling his hair playfully.
"I meant, you're beautiful." He said, brushing his hair back down. I turned over and lay my head down in his lap and kept on tapping his knee.
"That's better." I smiled innocently at him, still tapping out random beats on his knee.
"Mai..." Akemi said, staring at my fingers. "I'm not an expert with Morse code, but if I didn't know better I'd say you were writing something like 'Kyouya is the lord of all pigs and he lives on a pink cloud." Everyone started laughing, even Tamaki.
"Thanks, Akemi." Kyouya smiled, rolling his eyes.
"Well, maybe you are the lord of all pigs and you do live on a pink cloud. God, Kyouya. You don't even know..."
"You know what? It's not like you could do any better. Maybe I should start taking Morse code classes." I replied, laughing so hard I could barely talk.
"Is there even such thing?"
"Probably not. I'll invent that when I get older."
"Oh, yeah." Kaoru taunted from the stairs. "Along with potato flavoured chocolate and a pencil that can fly."
"Yes, Kaoru. Along with those two things."
"Hikaru, you are one lucky guy to have her as your girlfriend." She said to Hikaru, smirking.
He leaned down and kissed me softly, making a waterfall of butterflies overflow in my stomach. I smiled up at him. "Aren't I?" He whispered.
"You are." I said to him, reaching up and brushing a lock of his perfect copper hair out of his eyes.
"Ugh, there's too much love down here." Kaoru complained, making a grossed out face. "It's steaming up the room. I'm leaving." He hopped up the stairs two at a time and into his room.
"Jealous!" I shouted after him.
"In your dreams, honey!" He called back.
I laughed as Hikaru said loud enough for his twin to hear, "He really is jealous. He told me."
"No, I didn't. I just told you that you were lucky to have her. That doesn't mean I'm jealous." Kaoru replied, hopping back down the stairs.
"You should be then." I replied, giggling at his frowning face.
"Who wants to watch a movie?" Akemi asked, from her perch on Kyouya's lap.
"Me!" Everyone said at the same time.
She flitted over to the plasma screen TV sitting in the corner next to the fireplace and started going through all the dvd's in the cabinet underneath it. "We have... Rudolf, The Little Drummer Boy, The Grinch-"
"THE GRINCH!" The twins both shouted over her.
She jumped and dropped the movies she was holding. "God, idiots. It's not like we can't hear you..." She muttered, blowing her blond hair out of her green eyes. She turned the TV on and put the movie in.
We all curled up on the couches and the rug, wrapped in fluffy blankets, warmed by the crackling was sitting next to Haruhi, who obviously hated it and would move away everytime he scooted closer. Mori and Hunny were in one of the armchairs, Hunny climbing all over the older boy, wh didn't seem to mind. I guessed he was used to it by now. Kaoru sat on the other side of me and was threatening to tickle my feet, which he knew I hated. Hikaru kept shooting his twin annoyed looks, to which Kaoru only responded with a smirk.
The Narrator of the movie started to talk, "Every Who down in Whoville liked Christmas a lot, but the Grinch -who lived just north of Whoville - did not. The Grinch hated Christmas - the whole Christmas season. Now, please don't ask why; no one quite knows the reason. It could be, perhaps, that his shoes were too tight. Or it could be that his head wasn't screwed on just right. But I think that the most likely reason of all may have been that his heart was two sizes too small."
"I think you used to have that problem too." I whispered to Hikaru.
He laughed. "At least I have a heart, beauty..." He retorted.
"Me? I have a heart. I only give it away to certain people though."
"Like me?"
"Well... yes. Like you." I replied.
"Whats for dinner?" Tamaki asked.
"Well, since you asked, you can cook it." Akemi replied.
"I wouldn't trust Tamaki with a fork, let alone a whole meal." I said.
Kyouya pushed his glasses up his nose. "I have to agreee with you there, Mai."
"I'll make popcorn...?" Kaoru suggested.
"We can totally live off popcorn and cocoa for a week, Kaoru." Hikaru replied.
Everyone laughed. "We'll worry about dinner when we have to. For now... everyoen shut up and watch the movie." Akemi said.