All Thanks To Red Hue

by ToxicSniper210

Red Hue: where we bring color into your love life. Or at least that's what the commercial said. Hikaru knows that he can't have Haruhi, so he gives the website a shot. He meets a woman by the name of Ripley Barrett, who he starts to form a connection with. But when he actually meets her, she's not what he was expecting. Hikaru/OC

2. Awkward, Smooth, Awkward, ABORT!

Step #2:

Awkward, Smooth, Awkward, ABORT IMMEDIATELY!

...\~/...

Hikaru felt nervous having a girl in his apartment. The last time he had an attractive female over was about a month ago, but every time she had tried to get close to him, he would shirk away, like he was disgusted by her. However, that girl had had the annoying tendency to blab about her life too much; it had kind of freaked him out when he learned that she had lost her virginity to her second cousin twice removed. But in high school, he had feigned romance with his own twin brother, so who was he to judge? Well, obviously it had been his previous date, because she had thrown wine in his face when he said something about it. Then, as Hikaru slid the DVD into the player, he thought about all his other dates. There had been one girl that screamed at him in public for being three minutes late, exclaiming that the only way she would've forgave his lack of punctuality was that if he had died on the way over. The flowers he had gotten her (the cause of his tardiness) had calmed her raging anger, but after the date had been over, she admitted to him that she hadn't really found him attractive in the first place, and had skipped off after saying so. Then, there had been that girl that had acted more like a man than a lady...another had actually been a guy without him knowing until "she" walked into the men's bathroom with him...another had flirted with every other guy but him... Hikaru felt himself glance over at Sarah as he turned out the lights. He hoped she didn't have some nasty fetish or lost her virginity to a family member or...was actually an alien from outer space that only wanted to get close to him so she could cut him open and...and...

"So, I hope you like the movie." he said finally, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

"Oh, the one you picked out is one of my all-time favorites, so you did well in the pickin'." Sarah replied.

He could tell she was nervous too by the way she sat. She had perched herself on the edge of the couch, rather than sinking into it casually, like she came over all the time. Her frail-looking hands were folded in her lap politely, but her feet were planted flat on the floor, looking like she was ready to sprint if he yelled at her to get out. And her eyes scanned the whole room, but never rested on him. Hikaru wondered if this was her first date in awhile too. Or was this her first date altogether? The thought of this being her first date gave him a sense of comfort, causing him to relax a little. When he sat down, he stretched his right arm out on top of the sofa. That's when she leaned back, his fingers accidentally brushing against her shoulder.

"Sorry." they both muttered to each other.

She still hadn't shrugged off the bag that she brought with her. Was she waiting for him to say something?

"Do you want me to take your bag?" he asked.

Sarah shook her head, "Oh, no, don't worry about it." He watched her slide the straps of her shoulder, laying the bag beside her thigh. Hikaru wasn't even paying attention to the TV; he was wondering about what she had in her bag. Maybe she was a clean person and carried hand-sanitizer, clean wipes, and tissues like one of his friends from high school did. He expected her to have a cell phone of some kind, probably with some cutesy covering on it. He tensed at his next thought: what if she had a gun? His mind wandered to a show he watched once about a girl that carried a handgun in her purse and followed her boyfriend into the bathroom and shot him. Hikaru stared intently at her purse, searching for an outline of a weapon, but failed to find one. What if Sarah was one of those crazy people that shot the people she was pissed off at? Oh God, what if he pissed her off tonight?

"Is there something wrong?" Sarah asked.

Hikaru jumped and gave a small, nervous smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. Enjoying the movie so far?"

"Um, it hasn't even started yet... Have you been watching?"

Oh, awkward. "I have to go to the bathroom." That came out rushed.

"Oh, okay."

Hikaru practically jumped up and hurried to the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. His hands grasped the rim of the sink and he stared at himself in the mirror. What he saw wasn't what he wanted to see. His natural hair color was beginning to show through the dark ash, reminding him that he needed to take a trip to the store and get some more hair dye. The bags that were beginning to form under his golden eyes were something to grimace at. Sleep was becoming a foreign thing to him, his mind never shutting down with thoughts of all the bad times swirling around in his skull kept him awake most of the time. And his eyes...his eyes looked...empty. The last time he talked to Kaoru over video chat, his airhead of girlfriend came bumbling in, and commented about how his eyes looked sad. Now that he was actually looking at his face, his eyes were missing that usual liveliness he always seemed to have. How a beautiful woman like Sarah found him attractive, he surely didn't know.

Sarah. He was being a rude host and he could almost hear Tamaki's voice echoing inside his head, chastising him for keeping a lady waiting. Hikaru couldn't help but smirk at that, though he quickly dropped it. Tamaki. Hikaru's thoughts quickly turned back to Tamaki and Haruhi's wedding reception, specifically when Mori carried him out. He had been sober enough to see the disappointed look on the blonde's face before the doors had swung shut behind him. That had been the last time he saw Tamaki and Haruhi, and it had been on a bad note. Haruhi. What would she say to him now? Hikaru turned on the water, splashing his face with the warm, steaming water, allowing it to drip off the tip of his nose, and into the sink below. Drying of his face, Hikaru opened the door, and sauntered back out to the living room. By then, the movie had actually started, and Sarah was already smiling goofily.

Hikaru told himself he wouldn't think of Haruhi for the rest of the night.

If he did, he'd pinch himself.

The woman beside him burst into a fit of giggles, covering her mouth like she was trying to keep them contained. He couldn't help but laugh too, but he couldn't decide what he was laughing at- her laugh or the movie. Hikaru stretched his arm over the top of the couch again and this time, when his fingers brushed against her shoulder, he didn't mind. Even in the dark, he could see clearly how Sarah's face lit up when she laughed. Hikaru stared at the TV, but he immediately turned his head towards his stretched out arm when he felt the weight of Sarah's head fall on it. She had leaned her head back, seeming to not care. Hikaru wanted to shift his arm to where it wasn't touching her so much. Fingers brushing against her was what he could handle right now; her leaning against him, not really. He was about to move his arm when she looked over at him, large eyes boring into his.

"I love this movie." she said with a laugh.

"It is pretty funny."

A wave of relief washed over him when she removed her head.

"Jim Carrey has to be one of the funniest actors ever. I've seen almost all his movies."

This was moment when he was supposed to tell her which actor he thought was the funniest. He racked his brain for comedians, but could only think of ones that he knew Sarah had never heard of. Now he was trying to remember which actor Tara claimed was the funniest. They always held long conversations about movies and when they were in high school, he and Kaoru sometimes slept over at her apartment, watching movies all throughout the night.

"Nah, Robin Williams knocks him out of the ballpark."

Sarah gave him a knowing smile, nodding her head slowly. "One of my favorite movies from him is Mrs. Doubtfire."

Shit, which movie was that? "Oh, yeah, it was hilarious."

"One of my favorite parts is when he accidently sits down in front of his boss as Mrs. Doubtfire. I cracked up at both reactions- the boss's and when Daniel realized what he did. Priceless."

"Really? That's your favorite part too?" Keep it simple. Hikaru thought. Don't let her find out that you have no idea what the hell you're talking about.

Sarah laughed, nodding her head again.

Hikaru glanced up at the clock. Had it really been a half and hour already? He eyed Sarah, wondering if she was having a good time. Judging by the laughing and the conversation they just had, he assumed she was, and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't having a good time. Though her laugh was getting a little much. And he was glad that they were having non-awkward conversation. Hopefully it was finally progressing to the smooth stage. The movie was pretty hilarious. The case was on the coffee table in front of them and he read: The Mask. It seemed familiar. Maybe Tara had mentioned it before. Speaking of Tara...

"Hey, I know we haven't had dinner yet, but do you want dessert? I'm hoping to get rid of all those desserts that Tara brought me this week."

"Yeah, sure. Is she really that great of a cook?"

"Heaven is the only word that describes her cooking."

...\~/...

Right when he stepped into the kitchen, his cellphone rang. He was expecting Tara, calling him to ask nosy questions like she always did, but he was surprised when he saw Hunny on his caller ID.

"Hello?"

"Hika-chan! We've missed you!"

"Hey, Hunny-senpai, yeah, I've missed you all too. But I-"

"Reiko and I have something very important to tell you!"

"Um, Hunny-senpai, can't it wait? I'm on a-"

"Reiko's pregnant!"

Well, that took him by surprise. Hikaru's mind couldn't even comprehend Hunny and Reiko doing...oh God! Over the phone, he could hear people talking, and could hear the distinct monotone voice of Reiko herself. Those two having a baby? He remembered that he could barely believe that the two were going to get married when they sent him a wedding invitation. They did have a very unique relationship and they did make an interesting pair. Hikaru imagined what the nursery was going to look like. Probably a mixture of happy bunny mobiles and skeletons strapped in shackles on the walls. What the hell was the baby going to be like?

"Pregnant? Couldn't keep your hands off of her, could you, senpai?"

There was a laugh on the other line, "Nope! But I have a question for you."

"What?" He hoped Sarah wasn't getting annoyed with all his exits. Hikaru looked up at the clock. Forty-five minutes had passed. A loud laugh came from the living room and he tensed up. Man, her laugh was starting to get on his nerves.

"Well, we were wondering if you wanted to be the godfather. Do you?"

"Godfather, me? I would've thought you'd ask Mori-senpai."

"We did! Hika-chan, Reiko's having twins!"

Twins? His thoughts switched over to Kaoru now. What would Kaoru say about the state that Hikaru was in? One, probably to get some concealer for the bags under his eyes and to go work out, but what would he say about his situation with Haruhi? Hikaru pinched his wrist, wincing at the pain. But really? What would he say? Most likely he would say to move on, except he would stretch it out and make it sound polite. He wondered if his brother and his girlfriend were doing alright. Probably, considering he hadn't received a call saying otherwise, and Kaoru posted statuses on Facebook all the time saying that he had the best girlfriend in the world. Hikaru wished he could do something like that...

"Congrats, senpai." Really? That was all he could say?

"Takashi and Syd-chan are going to be the godparents of Hitoshi and-"

"Wait, did you say Syd-senpai?"

"Yeah, I thought she would make a responsible godmother!"

Sydney McNamara, responsible? This was the girl that almost flunked out of high school when they came to Boston. Fortunately, thanks to Kyoya, she picked herself back up. Before though, she was lazy, unenthusiastic about everything, and hated life and the people that walked it. She was sarcastic, pessimistic, and irresponsible. But there was one thing that kept her going: her job as a zookeeper. Syd always claimed that she could talk to animals better than people, even if she did get pecked, bit, and scratched at. Hikaru had never thought that highly of her until he actually saw her at work when the Host Club visited the zoo and watched her perform the water show. After that, the two had become pretty close friends, and he even called her sometimes.

"Hika-chan...she's a good candidate. Did you know she's made the Dean's List at her university a bunch of times? She's also an assistant to one of the best vets in the world right now. Plus, Hitoshi can have access to the zoo at all times! Isn't that great?"

"Yeah, I guess. So, who am I the godfather to?"

"Little Kimiko, of course. You should've seen the sonogram, Hika-chan. She was beautiful."

Maybe it was the thought of being a father, but Hikaru couldn't understand how the hell an alien-looking humanoid could be beautiful.

"And who's the godmother?" he asked.

"Haru-chan! She was so happy when she found out. She and Tama-chan both!"

"Oh...um...that's...great..." He and Haruhi. Godparents. Together. What was it going to be like when Reiko went into labor and Hunny wanted them all there with him? He would be forced to watch everyone cuddle next to their significant other while they waited. The last time he had been that close to someone was his last girlfriend, a young woman who he thought he was going to settle down with. But, on one stormy night, he found out that she needed to get back home and tend to her seven kids (all with different fathers) and get back to work. Turned out, she didn't even live in New York, city or state. Had he even loved her? Probably not...

"Listen, I have to go. I'm sort of on a date."

"A date? Hika-chan, I'm so happy for you! Is she pretty?"

"Yes, very much so."

"Is she nice?"

"Yes."

He could hear someone talking to Hunny on the other end, not Reiko, but another female voice, followed by a male monotone voice that could've been none other than Mori. A weak yelp came from Hunny and Hikaru was left wondering what happened to cause it. "Syd-chan, I-I c-can't ask h-him that..."

"Wait, Syd's there?"

"Oh, uh, yeah..." Hunny answered, his voice small. "The zoo's she's working at is making an animal exchange with the zoo here and she was sent to supervise it so she came to visit us in the meantime."

"And, what did she say?" Probably something cheeky, knowing her.

"Um...well...I CAN'T SAY IT!"

Hikaru chuckled, "Just say it."

Suddenly, Syd's voice entered his ear, "Dude, are you going to get laid?"

"Oh, hey, Syd-senpai, and probably not."

"Well, that's boring... I'm leavin'. Here, Hun."

Hunny's voice said, "I'm SORRY, HIKA-CHAN! SHE GRABBED THE PHONE AND-"

"Calm down, it's fine."

"Um...well...you need to get back to your date, but will you be the godfather?"

"Um..." With Haruhi? Pinch... "Yeah, I'd be honored."

There was a cheer on the other end, "Yay, I'm so happy! Okay, you get back to your date now! And...cheer up, 'kay?"

"Yeah...okay..." Click.

Hikaru slipped the phone back in his pocket, stepping towards the counter where all the desserts were strung out. He grabbed a serving tray, lining it with delicious-looking fruit tarts, pastries with cream-filling, and cakes decorated beautifully. Another laugh came from the living room and he winced, the shrill of it ringing in his ears. It was almost like a siren going off, but ten times worse. No one could have a laugh that obnoxious. But he was a gentleman, he wouldn't say anything (hopefully), and even if he did, he really wasn't in the mood to feel the wrath of Tara in the morning.

As he lifted the tray from the counter, Hikaru paused at the door, and pinched himself five times before heading to the living room.

...\~/...

He was greeted with Sarah's banshee laugh and he replied with a cringe. Setting the tray down in front of her, she quickly picked out a fruit tart, and put it to her lips before pausing. She set it back down, grimacing, "Yuck, it has strawberries on it." she mumbled, bringing a chocolate-frosted cake to her lips, and taking a bite. Sarah's face scrunched up, an action that had not gone unnoticed by him. He had to wonder how Tara would've reacted to this woman's reactions. Probably a kick to her face... Hikaru watched the woman search through the desserts, a frown settling on her lips as she sat back, clearly disappointed. "They all have strawberries..." Sarah pouted.

A certain brunette liked strawberries...pinch.

Another laugh came from her.

The same brunette had a nice laugh...two pinches.

This was going to be a long night.

...\~/...

Hikaru watched her intently as Sarah took her first bite of Tara's Italian cooking. When she shrugged, he felt the prickling sensation of annoyance wash over him. His face felt hot when she commented, "I've had better. Maybe 'heaven' isn't the word to describe her cooking. It's good, but not heavenly." The woman on the other side of the island table ditched the gnocchi, real gnocchi, and went for Tara's minestrone soup that consisted of various vegetables, beef broth, and beef itself. "Isn't this just regular soup?" Sarah asked, blowing on her spoonful to cool it off.

"Basically, but this soup originated from Italy; Rome to be more specific."

Another shrug. His eye twitched.

"Kyoya and Tara spent a few months in Italy so she could get hand-on-hand experience at one of their culinary schools there. So if you were to get the real thing, it would be Tara's cooking."

"Or at one of the Italian restaurants."

"Yeah, but she usually does it for free. Why pay when you have someone who's willing to cook for you?"

Sarah ditched the soup. "So, have you been anywhere out of state?"

"Well, yeah, haven't you?"

She shook her head, "No, not enough money. I'm not exactly rolling in cash, ya know. Waitresses don't make millions." She smiled at him and he noticed how there was a gap between her two front teeth. And she giggled; he wished she'd stop. "So, where's your favorite place to go to?" she asked.

"Definitely Spain; my brother and I go there all the time. We love the architecture there. It's kinda to die for."

"Really? You must be loaded in order to go there all the time." Giggle.

"Are you going to eat?" he asked. The last time he said he was rich, his date had practically thrown herself on him.

"Not hungry. I'm not really impressed." Another goddamn laugh.

That was it. He snapped. Her laugh, her condescending nature towards Tara cooking, and her constant giggling. And he could hear her voice, babbling on about something that happened at the restaurant she worked at. The rude customers, the real cute group of boys that came in and acted like they were all that, the almost accident consisting of one of her co-workers cutting his thumb off. Everything about her was beginning to irritate him. Hikaru felt himself twitch every time she tapped her fingers against the island top. He expected her to tell him her life story, but before she could, he just had to open his big mouth.

"Man, do you ever shut up?"

The atmosphere of the room turned heavy. The look on Sarah's face was one of shock, her mouth agape and her eyes showed hurt. There was a slouch in her shoulders and a quiver in her bottom lip.

"W-What...?"

"Seriously, your voice is annoying, and what the hell's up with your laugh? I'd rather listen to my brother's girlfriend."

Next thing he knew, wine covered his face, dripping from his nose and chin.

"You're the worst date ever!"

She left him sitting there.

He hadn't been her first date.

...\~/...

The sour taste of beer lingered on his tongue and he despised it, but the buzz he felt was too good to get rid of. He hadn't bothered to change after the wine incident, a dark purple spot decorated the collar of his shirt, and he could still smell the sweet aroma of wine. The island table in the kitchen had half-eaten Italian plates and he hadn't even bothered to mop up the wine that spilled on the floor. After Sarah had ran out of his apartment in tears, Hikaru had slipped into his coat, and walked to the 24-hour convenient store, and picked up some hair dye. Now, he was waiting for his freshly-dyed hair to dry.

The TV lit up his whole living room, the volume blaring. He heard someone pound the ceiling below him with a broom, yelling at him to shut the fuck up, but Hikaru ignored them.

"I met my husband over Red Hue and we hit it off immediately." On the screen, Hikaru watched as a man danced closely to a woman, swaying back and forth to the music. "And I've never been happier. We've been married for six years now." Hikaru took another swig of his beer when the commercial switched to a different couple, the two holding hands and sharing a sweet kiss. "I thought I'd never meet a woman that liked to travel as much as I do, but Red Hue found my future fiancé and now we're going to Australia for our honeymoon."

"Whoopdie doo for you, Larry. I've been there three times already."

The commercial switched to a couple that sat in front of a TV, both bearing video game controllers. "Red Hue introduced us almost instantly. I almost gave up looking for my soulmate, but when her name popped up, I knew I had found her."

"This makes me sick." But he kept watching.

Now, a well-dressed man stood in the middle of the screen, hair spiked in the front, and he clapped his hands together, giving the viewers his best smile. "Red Hue has currently millions of people looking for their soulmate. Free of charge, but we expect a story explaining how you and your loved one are doing."

Hikaru looked down at the bruise that was forming on his wrist from pinching himself.

"Red Hue: where we bring color into your love life."

...\~/...

"I'm a Gemini. Um...I'm artistic, adventurous, and...what else should I write?"

Seriously, what was he supposed to write? He would've thought that writing about himself was easy, but this was just plain hard. Hikaru thought about writing that he was a billionaire, had the body of a god, and drove around in a red Ferrari just for a barrel of laughs, but he threw the idea away. What was appealing to women? He thought about Tara and her relationship with Kyoya. On numerous occasions she had said that Kyoya's intelligence was one of the reasons she fell for him; she liked guys that knew what they were talking about and didn't stumble over themselves. Kaoru's girlfriend was only interested in his little brother for money (or he liked to think). Syd always said that she liked guys that had a confident aura to them and she liked them a little bit possessive.

"And Haruhi likes idiots." Pinch.

"Start over. I'm currently attending New York City's Art Institute, hopefully to earn a degree in graphic design. People have told me that I'm artistic, adventurous, and a bit mischievous. My hobbies include art, video games, and pulling pranks."

Hikaru looked down at the 'what are you looking for' section.

"I'm looking for the doe, brown eyes, a blunt personality, and the charm of a commoner."

...\~/...

"She threw her wine on you?"

"Yep."

"Called you the worst date ever?"

"Yep."

"And ran out crying?"

"Yep."

"You're a dumbass."

"Yep...wait a second, no I'm not!"

Tara shrugged, flipping over the pancakes she was preparing on the skillet. The apartment smelled amazing, a great way to start the morning. Hikaru was sitting on one of the stools at the island, a steaming coffee cup in his hands. Tara was at the stove, cooking up a variety of breakfast foods- pancakes, bacon, sausage, eggs, everything. Kyoya was sitting opposite of Hikaru, reading the New York Times, sipping at a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice. The morning sun's rays streamed through the kitchen windows, giving the kitchen a warm hue.

"Oh, and did I mention that she didn't like your cooking." Hikaru said with a smirk.

Tara paused in her cooking to turn and look at him. After a few moments in staring at him, she turned back to the stove, grumbling.

Suddenly, breaking through the silence, his phone began vibrating. Tara picked it up off the counter, handing it to him. Hikaru was thankful she didn't look to see who it was.

It was an e-mail from Red Hue.

Hello Hikaru!

Thank you for setting up an account on our wonderful website.

We are pleased to inform you that we have found the person for you!

Click on the following link to see who we paired you up with.

He clicked it.

Up popped a screen with a profile that didn't have a picture on it. He hadn't put a picture on his either.

"What is it?" Tara questioned, setting a plate in front of him and Kyoya. Hikaru noticed how Kyoya had stopped reading and was now staring at him, waiting for an answer.

"Have you guys seen the commercials for a dating site called Red Hue?" Hikaru asked.

"Uh, yeah. They're on like every five minutes." Tara replied.

"Well, I signed up last night, and they already paired me up with someone."

There was a silence while Hikaru read over the person's profile.

"Well?" It was Kyoya that questioned him this time.

"Her name's Ripley Barrett. Strange name in my opinion."

Ripley Barrett. It felt strange saying her name.