Thank you everyone for all the lovely reviews! Your feedback is most appreciated and I am glad that everyone is enjoying the story. That makes me happy because at times I feel iffy about it, but I won't stop until it is finished. With that being said, please do enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own Ouran Host Club or any of the characters


"Ahh, just like the old days," Tamaki reclined back in his seat, his leg crossed over the other.

Haruhi sat between Kaoru and Hunny, who insisted he sit next to his Haru-chan because he had not seen her for so long. Haruhi wondered if that was even a good enough reason but to Hunny, it was.

"-and the teachers let me eat cake in the classroom and they say that it is so adorable! When are you going to come to the university, Haru-chan?"

"I…uh…"

"Don't say such things, Hunny-senpai!" Tamaki scolded him. "You know that Haruhi's chance of getting into such an elite school as Ouran University will be a difficult challenge."

Haruhi wanted to slap him upside the head, "thanks for your support, Senpai."

"Actually," Kyouya pulled out his notebook, "with Haruhi's high marks and not to mention extra curricular activities with the club, she has a decent chance of getting into Ouran University, even without special favors."

"You guys are starting to piss me off," Haruhi gritted her teeth.

The years of the 'commoner jokes' and her being in such an elite school and how lucky she was to be there, it was grating on her nerves. Before it was funny, now it was becoming obnoxious. The twins were grinning to themselves, they knew that Haruhi was already accepted, but they wouldn't say a thing, they did make a promise after all.

"Sooo…Mori-senpai, how's life treating you?" Hikaru crowed over at the silent man.

Mori blinked but then narrowed his eyes slightly, he was always able to tell when the twins were up to something and what they had said in the Music Room, he was just waiting for them to strike at any moment.

"Okay."

"Just okay?" Kaoru asked, lifting an eyebrow. "You didn't miss us-"

"-or a certain someone, did you?" Hikaru finished.

Haruhi glared at the two of them.

"I suppose."

"Oh come on, you can tell us!" they sang together.

"Hn."

Everyone glanced between the twins and Mori and Haruhi just stared at the ground. Where was that rock when you needed it?

There was an awkward silence within the group and the Hitachiin brothers knew they weren't getting anywhere anytime soon. Thankfully a butler appeared carrying a tray full of tea and sweets for Hunny.

"Thank goodness," Haruhi whispered under her breath. She nudged Kaoru with her foot and glared at him.

"Wha-"

"Whatever you are doing," she hissed at him, "stop it now."

"I'm not doing any-"

"Just…don't."

Kaoru 'hmphed' and crossed his arms over his chest but then uncrossed them as he took a glass of tea. Refreshments were done being passed out and everyone was settling in to enjoy them when a shrill laughter pierced the air.

"A-HAHAHA-HA!"

"Is that who I think it is?" Tamaki looked scared and so did everyone else.

"WHAT A PERFECT DAY FOR A BEAUTIFUL OURAN HOST CLUB REUNION!"

Renge appeared out of nowhere on her powerful motor and twirled around in circles, her summer dress fluttering in the breeze that suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

"You know, she's been quiet up until now," Haruhi mused, taking a sip of the cold tea.

"Aren't you supposed to be in class?" Hikaru asked.

Renge smirked, "OF COURSE! BUT WHO COULD MISS AN OPPORTUNITY LIKE THIS?!"

"Not you," the twins sighed.

Hunny waved happily at Renge but then hid behind Mori because the spazzy girl was eyeing him like he was some jailbait candy, he pretty much was in appearance but his age was otherwise.

"Renge," Kyouya spoke, "as much as your appearance delights us all…" Renge beamed at the sarcastic compliment. "We do have official Host Club business to discuss so if you don't mind giving us some privacy."

"But-I'm your manager!"

"Declared by you," Kaoru snorted with annoyance.

"Quiet you!" Renge jabbed her finger in his direction.

Haruhi tried to make peace, "not for nothing, Renge, but I think Kyouya-senpai is right. If we could just have a few moments to ourselves, please?"

The spazzy manager looked as if she was going to cry at any moment and she pretty much did. In a way they felt bad for chasing her off, but the girl could be annoying at times, she didn't appear to have grown up, maturity-wise, much.

"Fine!" she huffed, disappearing with her machine that followed her wherever she went.

"Phew!" Tamaki breathed, "I was afraid she was going to attack us all. Good job you guys, another victory for the Host Club!"

"You didn't do a thing, boss," the twin brothers mocked Tamaki.

"I DID TOO! YOU TWO ARE JUST UNGRATEFUL, SPOILED, SELFISH LITTLE-"

"Speak for yourself."

Hitachiin Twins: 5 million points. Tamaki: 0.

Hunny tugged on Haruhi's jacket sleeve and flashed her with an adorable smile, "Haru-chan, Hika-chan and Kao-chan told me about Taka-chan and you liking him. Is that true?"

Haruhi almost fell over and her whole body trembled with fear and anger. They promised they wouldn't tell anybody, or was it they promised they wouldn't tell HIM?! She should have clarified and made them sign a contract; she was now regretting all of what she said.

"H-how…better yet, when did you find out, Hunny-senpai?"

"Not too long ago," Hunny pulled out a piece of paper and showed it to her, "see, they gave me this note. It even has bunnies drawn on it, isn't it cute?!"

Haruhi laughed nervously, "y-yeah, it s-sure is Hunny-senpai!"

"It's okay if you like Taka-chan," Hunny leaned in closer, whispering so that no one heard. Tamaki, Hikaru, and Kaoru were making so much noise that their conversation really wouldn't be heard.

"I-I never said I did," Haruhi wanted to die. She wanted lightning to strike her dead on the spot, and then it would end this torture and embarrassment.

"I can tell!" Hunny smiled.

"P-please, can we not talk about this now?" Haruhi waved her hands at him.

Hunny tilted his head in confusion, "how come? Do you not like him back?"

"I-I…uh…"

Since when did she ever lose her composure? Oh yes, it happened ALL THE TIME, especially when it came to having all the Host members around her. Whatever wall she had built up, they easily tore through it.

"I think he likes you back, I can tell."

Haruhi was drifting off into space but was pulled back down with that statement, "you think so?"

"Yeah."

"Not that I care!" she shook her head. "It's…whatever…"

"You should talk to him!" Hunny suggested, trying to push her in the right direction.

Haruhi stuttered even more, "t-t-talk t-to h-him?"

"Tell him how you feel! I like Taka-chan and he knows it so you should too!"

Haruhi wondered if Hunny was thinking along the terms of 'like' as in liking a friend or liking as more than a friend. With Hunny, it was hard to tell because one minute he was very on the ball and cunningly witty, and then the next he appeared to be naïve and precious. She cursed his appearance and the seemingly innocent vibes he gave off.

"He knows that we are friends," Haruhi smiled, gathering what was left of her composure.

Hunny frowned, "but this note says that you…"

"Please, I'm begging you for right now to be quiet. I don't know what those two," she glared in the direction of the chaotic twins, "jerks said, but you can't believe a single word of it."

"So you don't like Takashi then?" Hunny's eyes filled with tears and Haruhi had to think fast.

"I do! As friends and only friends!" Haruhi sighed and rubbed her forehead, she was getting a splitting headache. "They are just messing around with me and trying to start something. You know how Hikaru and Kaoru are."

Hunny didn't believe her but flashed her a dazzling smile anyway, "okay, whatever you say Haru-chan!"

"I'VE HAD ABOUT ENOUGH OF YOU TWO!" Tamaki screamed, throttling both the twins by their necks.

Hunny winked, "I won't tell anyone, I promise."

"Thanks, Hunny-senpai," Haruhi knew he was telling the truth. Hunny wasn't one to go around breaking promises, and if he did, Mori was always there to scold him.

'Oh hell, if he ever finds out about that note and whatever Hikaru and Kaoru are saying…I'm dead…I'll be so dead. I couldn't face him if he ever knew and…where is that damn rock?'

Haruhi eyes darted nervously between everyone. She was feeling sick to her stomach and the best thing at the moment was to run away. She slowly slid from her chair and while it appeared that everyone was distracted, she took off running as fast as she could. Between the sudden surprise visit by everyone, the twins stirring things up, Hunny's possible knowledge of her secret that she tried to keep hidden, and the possibility of Mori finding out-she needed to escape badly.

"HARU-CHAN! WHERE ARE YOU GOING?!" Hunny cried out but his call fell on deaf ears.

'You can't keep running away from all your problems and any confrontations you have,' her mind scolded her.

Haruhi ignored it as her shoes slapped against the concrete as she exited the school property and booked it down the road. She made her way into town and pushed past the busy shoppers and ignored their cries of anger. All she could hear was her labored breathing from running, the slapping of her shoes on the ground, and the rapid beating of her heart. The only thing she wanted to find at that moment was solace and that rock that kept hiding from her. The obvious place to hide was at her home, in her room, where it was safe, but they knew where she lived so that wouldn't do. The next best place was somewhere she spent a lot of time at when she was little.

'Must get there and fast.'

After another five minutes of sprinting through busy streets and making her way into the much quieter neighborhoods that were familiar and comforting to her, Haruhi finally made it to the place that was sure to bring her peace and quiet. The park.

"Made it!" she panted, heading right towards the swings, those were her favorite after all. Haruhi flung herself at the swing set and fell into the leathery seat that was held up by two long chains.

'They won't find me here and I will just return to school tomorrow…no…make it in a month or two,' she decided.

Haruhi leaned her head against one of the chains as she caught her breath. Her heart was beating wildly in her chest and she shrugged off her jacket so she could cool off. The sun was beating down on her and she did not want to pass out from running so fast and sweating up a storm while doing so. When Haruhi could finally breathe again, she slowly pushed herself back and forth on the swing.

'What if everyone finds out? Too many people know that I sort of have feelings for Takashi but that doesn't mean anything because we aren't going out, we're just friends. Just…friends,' she re-assured herself over and over again.

'Then if Hunny-senpai can't keep the secret and he tells Takashi, because they are so close, and Takashi finds out he'll want to talk about it and I don't think I could do that. He's…somewhat intimidating but I know he is nice, we write back and forth to each other. Oh, why am I freaking out like this?! This is so dumb and I've made it worse because I ran off.'

Haruhi swung faster on the swing, the breeze blowing through her short, brown hair. Her toes skidded against the dirt, kicking up a dust cloud. A million thoughts were going through her head and she couldn't tell left from right. She was independent and strong and right now she was weak and fragile, plus confused. Everything was fine when it was just her knowing about it because no one else knew. Now that more and more people were finding out, it scared her to death.

'Okay, breathe Haruhi, don't let it bother you. Who cares what other people think? You didn't care before and you shouldn't care now. If Takashi…oh forbid that happens…found out then it's nothing serious. Just remain cool, calm and collect-'

"Hey."

"AAAHHH!" Haruhi screamed as that familiar deep voice came up from behind her. She nearly toppled out of the swing and both of her feet pushed down hard into the dirt, making her come to a complete stop.

"W-what are y-you doing here?!" she stuttered, her whole body shaking from fright. "H-how did y-you find m-me?"

Mori took the swing seat next to her and stared straight ahead, "I followed you."

"W-why?" she coughed, trying to get her voice under control.

"You ran off suddenly."

Haruhi couldn't think of anything to say, she couldn't tell him the real reason why she ran off. Her nightmares were coming true, he was sitting right by her and he knew. She knew that he knew. This made her come to the conclusion that Hunny must have said something.

'Oh no, he had the note and I didn't bother to snatch it away from him! Why didn't I do that? Why?!' she groaned and began to freak out even more.

"Did Mitsukuni say something to upset you?"

Haruhi glanced over at him; she looked uptight as always but dead serious as if-if Hunny did say something then he would take immediate action.

"N-no, of course not!" she lied. "It was just the noise; it was bothering me and the fighting. I couldn't take it, I've grown used to it being somewhat quiet and…that's all."

"Hmm."

'He doesn't believe me,' she thought, 'either that or he knows and is playing it cool.'

"You don't have to stay here with me, I'm grown you know!"

"I know."

"You should go hang out with your friends," she tried to push him away. He was invading her private space and as much as she enjoyed his silent company at times, right now she wasn't.

"You are my friend."

Haruhi almost fell off the swing and she clutched onto the chains, hard. He looked over at her and Haruhi wanted to shrink underneath his gaze. Why must he always look at her like that?

"Something wrong?"

"No, why?"

He nodded at her clenched fists around the chains. Haruhi released the chains and put her hands in her lap.

"It's been a stressful start to the week," she explained, half-lying this time.

It was silent between them again. Haruhi listened to the swing that Mori occupied, creek slowly back and forth. The birds chirped from the trees and there were the faint sounds of cars passing by from the road.

"I received your letter," he spoke after a while.

Haruhi looked surprised, "oh?"

"It arrived right before we left; I read it on the way here."

"That's good then," she could feel her nerves calming. He had a way of making her so nervous but then so calm at the same time. She wondered if that was even normal.

"I appreciate your letters."

Haruhi blushed.

Mori stood up from the swing and stretched his long limbs, "I'll tell them you aren't feeling good."

"I…thanks…"

"I won't tell them where you are, it'll buy you some time if you want to be alone."

Haruhi thanked him again.

"I just needed a time-out."

Mori nodded his head, "see you later, Haruhi."

Haruhi felt his heavy hand on the top of her head and she willed her face not to turn bright red. The hand left her head and she watched as he walked off. She worried about nothing because nothing did happen and everything was fine. Hunny did not say a word and everything was okay, just like it should be. Unless Hunny did say something and Mori was keeping it a secret, but then he would have said something to her, wouldn't he? Damn those infernal 'what if' questions she had.

"Hey…Takashi!" Haruhi leapt up from the swing, snatched her jacket up, and went running after him. In that moment she figured whatever happened-happened and if he wasn't saying anything then everything was okay.

"Haruhi?"

"I'm feeling a lot better."

Mori's lips moved up just slightly, it had to be seen by the trained eye, "that is good."

"I think I'm ready to head back now."

"Okay."

Haruhi followed silently behind him as they made their way back to the school grounds. She kept repeating to herself that whatever happened-happened and she wouldn't send herself into a freak-out session again.

"Haruhi?"

"Y-yes?" she looked up at him as he slowed down so she could catch up to his long strides.

"It's good to see you again."

Haruhi could feel her heart thud loudly in her chest and she smiled brightly up at him, "it's good to see you again too."