Step #3:

Getting Past That Blinking Line

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"Here's your Caramel Dee-Lite Latte! That'll be 3.95!" the cashier said, waiting for him to give out the right change.

"Here. Keep the change." Hikaru grabbed his latte, walking to his usual spot, the center table with the stools.

His favorite café was unusually busy once more, but this time, groups of friends and family crowded the place, not couples. The warm buzz he got from being surrounded by loved ones was inviting, a smile taking its place on his face. Sitting himself down, he slipped his hand into his pocket, taking out the folded up profile of the woman they matched him up with on Red Hue. He had printed it off his computer earlier that morning, looking at it over and over again, trying to figure out an introduction letter to her in his head.

Ripley Barrett.

Still a strange name, but from what her profile said, they had a lot in common.

She liked video games, just like him, and she even listed some of her favorites: Fallout 3 and New Vegas, the Assassin's Creed series, and Red Dead Redemption; loved music and seemed to listen to all kinds, from Dean Martin to Slipknot; and was studying game design, just like him. Hikaru looked up from the profile, peering outside. It had started to snow, the soft look of the snowflakes caused a shiver to go down his spine. He wondered if she liked snow...

Ask her if she likes snow. Hikaru scribbled that on the paper, next to all the other questions he had for her. Something about meeting a new person, especially that she had the possibility of being his soulmate, was exciting. He took a sip of his latte, resting his head in his hand. His eyes moved down to the 'what are you looking for' section of her profile. This woman was looking for someone that would make her laugh, especially for times when she was down. She wanted someone to sit down and play video games with her. A man that was confidant and a bit possessive. He smirked at that. Those were Syd's requirements.

He kind of wished this woman would send him a message first.

The speakers above him blurted out a local radio station. According to the weatherman, all travelers needed to stay in the city due to the incoming snow storm. Hikaru wondered if Kyoya and Tara had even left yet. From what the radio was saying, the storm was a particularly bad one, and it had already hit the highways. He hoped that the two would stay in New York City a little bit longer; it got unbearably lonely sometimes.

The bells on the door gave a gentle ring. He looked up to see who entered. The sight caused his eyes to widen.

It was Sarah, his previous date, and from the looks of it, she had already moved on.

The man who she was holding the arm of was huge! He was around the same height as Mori, maybe even a little taller, and had arms the size of tree trunks. He walked like a gorilla, a feature that came to life when Sarah pulled him towards the cash register, already telling the cashier their orders. The man looked like he belonged on a military base, not in a cozy café. Hikaru hid his eyes from view when they walked past him to one of the booths. He peeked through his fingers at them. Man, if that guy ever punched him... Hikaru didn't even want to think about it.

To distract himself from Sarah and her new man, Hikaru pulled out his phone, checking his e-mails. Nope, no new messages. Just great, it was really looking like he was going to be the one that was going to have to compose the first message. What was he supposed to write? More importantly, how was he supposed to greet her? Hello sounded too formal and hey sounded too casual. Maybe this Ripley woman liked casual. Oh, oh, oh, maybe he should greet her with Ohayou! No, she probably wouldn't know what that meant.

His stomach growled, but he made no move to get something to eat. His appetite wasn't with him today.

A yawn escaped him. Man, he was tired. He had stayed up all night with the thoughts of his ruined date with Sarah.

Hikaru stole a glance towards Sarah. She was laughing, but the man's face was like an angry stone. Maybe he was one of those guys that didn't smile or make any kind of expression when they joked around. Her laugh rang in his ears and he cringed. It was still annoying.

The ash-haired man turned back to his phone, opening up the notepad section.

He decided that he wouldn't greet her at all, but would just start talking.

I can't believe Red Hue matched me up with someone that quickly. Anyways though, Ripley, that's a strange name. It reminds me of a story my friend told me about a cat she had named Ripley.

I really don't know what to say. This is my first time on a dating website.

-HH

P.S. It's snowing here in New York City. Do you like snow?

That was really, really, lame. He kind of wondered how she would respond to a message like this. Now he wanted to send it just to find out.

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Every message he threw out, they sounded lamer than the first. Why was it so freakin' hard to talk to someone? What would the other Host Club members do in a situation like this? Kyoya would probably whip up an impressive sounding letter and probably throw something intellectual in there as well. Hunny would most likely talk about cute stuff and cake and ask if she liked cute stuff and cake, too. Mori would keep his sweet and simple with as few words as possible. And Kaoru could always connect with people better than he could. His little brother always had a way with words.

And Tamaki...Tamaki would ask questions, lots and lots of questions about her.

"Hey, I need a word with you." someone said next to him. Hikaru looked over, then up, and found him staring into the eyes of Sarah's date. He looked meaner up close than he did at a distance. How could a little thing like Sarah like this brute of a man?

Hikaru tensed up when the man stepped closer to him.

"You need to apologize to her. She's crying right now. You really hurt her."

"Yeah, well, she needs to get over it." God, he was such a hypocrite.

Hikaru saw the man's eyes darken. "You were a real asshole to her last night."

"And she was a real bitch." He really needed to stop himself.

"You had no right to insult her. She has a beautiful laugh."

"Your eardrums burst because of it. You can't hear it anymore." Uh oh...

Not a moment after he said that, the brute's fist connected with his eye. The impact sent Hikaru backwards, falling off his chair, and onto the cold, hard floor beneath. He felt the back of his head hit the floor, sending a wave of pain through him. His eye was already beginning to swell and bruise. Please, somebody, stop him. Hikaru pleaded in his mind, but when he saw the monster of a man push the stool in front of him out of his way, Hikaru knew no one was going to help him. They were just as scared as he was. He should defend himself, but Hikaru found no energy to move. It was like...it was like he just gave up.

"Sir, please calm down!" Hikaru heard the manager yell from behind the counter.

A foot connected with his stomach, knocking the wind out of him.

"Please, sir!" Hikaru watched through blurry eyes as someone finally pushed his attacker away.

But they weren't strong enough. Sarah's date kept on coming.

A fist swooped down and connected with his jaw, another collided with the bridge of his nose, a crack coming from the impact.

That's when he heard the bells on the door ring again.

"What the fuck are we supposed to do now? That goddamned Mother Nature... Good thing she's now real or else I'd give her a swift kick to the ass." a voice with a southern drawl said loudly.

"Calm down, my love, you're attracting attention." a cool voice replied.

Hikaru turned his head, eyes focusing in on Kyoya and Tara. The Heavens must've been looking out for him today.

"Kyoya..." he managed to get out, even if it was sputtered out.

The spectacled man turned his head at the mention of his name and his dark eyes landed on Hikaru. The dark-haired man left Tara's side, rushing over, and kneeling beside Hikaru. He pulled out a handkerchief from his coat pocket and wiped the blood from his younger friend's nose. His left eye was swollen shut and there was a gruesome-looking bruise on the right side of his jaw. Kyoya helped sit Hikaru up, his fingers brushing against a knot on the back of Hikaru's head. Even his gentle touch caused Hikaru to wince.

"Hey," Hikaru's attacker said, directing this towards Kyoya. "Is this asshole your friend?"

"Yes. What of it?" Kyoya said, his voice low.

"You need to tell him to apologize to Sarah. He really hurt her feelings."

Kyoya stood up, staring coldly at the man in front of him. The lone twin's knees were weak, shaking even. The stool he had been sitting on was on its side on the checkered floor. Some people left the café once the ruckus had started, others stayed to be entertained, and others were too frightened to even move. A group of teenage girls gasped at the appearance of Hikaru's face, putting their hands to their mouths in shock. The brute's fist had been hard as steel and as big as a boulder. God, he felt sick.

"I feel as though they both need to apologize to one another." Kyoya replied sharply.

"And why's that? Sarah didn't do anything. He was the one that was rude to her."

"I agree; Hikaru was quite rude to her. A host should never treat his guest as such, but a guest should have the common decency to not complain, something Sarah did plenty of at dinner last night. She also needs to apologize to my girlfriend since she was the one that prepared dinner last night."

"Sarah owes an apology to no one!"

Hikaru heard footsteps approach them behind and he suddenly got a face-full of cold meat. Tara entered his line of vision, kneeling to get a good look at his face. The blonde cupped his face gingerly, tracing the bruise around his eye carefully. Her thin lips were pressed in a line, blue-green eyes narrowed. Hikaru pressed the slab of steak to his eye gently, wondering where the hell she even got steaks. Then he remembered that there was a meat shop across the street. Knowing Tara, she probably cut in front of everyone to get what she wanted.

Hikaru watched her stand up, unwrapping two other packages of meat, both steaks. She strode over to the brute, holding out a steak to him. He took it with a confused look, but a couple seconds after, Tara clubbed him in the right eye, delivering another punch to his nose shortly after. The monster of a man toppled over, grabbing a table to stand up straight. Sarah ran up to him, but Tara threw a steak to her to, the auburn-haired woman catching it sloppily. Once she looked up at Tara though, the southerner's fist collided with Sarah's jaw, also causing the woman to stumble back into the brute.

"This goddamn café's ice machine broke so I had to go get meat." Tara turned to Hikaru, pulling him up.

"C'mon, you need to get your nose aligned because that dumbass broke it." Tara said, sneering in the brute's direction.

When they left the café, the three acquainting themselves with the bitter cold and snow once more, Hikaru pocket vibrated. He reached into his pocket, slipping his phone out. When he turned it on, he stopped abruptly when he saw who it was.

"Hikaru, is something wrong?" Kyoya asked, turning to look at the younger man.

"It's her."

"Who?" he questioned.

Hikaru held out his phone, both Tara and Kyoya leaning in to read what was on the screen.

Red Hue: Message from Ripley Barrett.

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Tape heavy on his nose, jaw throbbing dully, and eye looking worse for wear, Hikaru couldn't help but feel that the churning in his stomach was the worst feeling of them all. He still hadn't opened the woman's message, and he had already gotten checked by the doctor and was back home, sitting on his couch, staring at his phone. Tara and Kyoya went out to pick up dinner since Tara wasn't in the mood to cook, and they left him alone once more.

He was nervous as hell about the message and he had no idea why.

"GAH!" Hikaru yelled when the phone suddenly rang in his hands. Being startled while being nervous, not a good mix.

He answered, "Hello."

"Hi-ka-ru!"

"Oh, hey Kaoru."

"'Hey Kaoru', that's all you can say? No 'Oh, Kaoru, I've missed you so much' or 'I love you so much, best little brother in the whole world'?"

"Oh, Kaoru, best little brother in the whole world, how I've missed you so much. What would I ever do without you? There, better?" he replied sarcastically.

"Mmm, I'll take it. So, what's up with you? You haven't called in awhile." Hikaru could say the same for him.

"Well, I had a date yesterday night, I-"

"A DATE? Hikaru, how'd it go? Is there going to be a second date? Is she nice? Pretty? Funny? How about-"

"Whoa, chill out." Hikaru butted it. The questions were getting a bit much. "It went...horrible. I couldn't keep my mouth shut. She was pretty though, but her laugh was irritating. Couldn't handle it."

"Her laugh? Hikaru, can't you keep your opinions to yourself for once?"

"Well, excuse me for being honest."

"Hikaru, there's a difference between being honest and hurtful and it sounds like you were hurtful."

"Yeah, well, she was annoying." He sighed into the phone, right when Kaoru sighed. They were still in sync despite the many miles between them. "I'm not really in the mood right now. There was...a mishap today."

"A mishap...? What happened?"

"Get this, my date from last night's already moved on. And her boyfriend's huge. Actually, that's an understatement; this guy was gigantic. This guy just came up to me all of a sudden and demanded that I apologize to her. I said no, he punched me, and-"

"He punched you?"

"Yeah, broke my nose. I have a pretty nice shiner and my jaw hurts like hell. Kyoya and Tara came to the rescue, though." He didn't bother telling Kaoru that he egged the brute on by insulting Sarah. He really didn't want to hear his brother scold him right now. Plus, he couldn't ignore the butterflies in his stomach; still nervous about the message. "But I made an account on a dating website though."

"Really? Which one?"

"Red Hue. And they already found someone for me."

"Who? WHO?"

"Sheesh, will you calm down. Her name's Ripley Barrett. She sent me a message today and-"

"Well, what did it say?"

"...I don't know. I haven't read it yet."

"Ugh, Hikaru, you need to read it!"

"I can't."

"And why not?"

"I'm scared." It was silent on the other end. "What if it's something really cruel? What she already doesn't like me?"

"Hikaru, you need to read that message. That's why I'm going to hang up now."

"Wait, don't-!"

"And Hikaru...you need to move on." Click.

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Dear Hikaru,

Sorry, I didn't exactly know how to start this, so I went formal. I'm still kind of surprised that Red Hue matched me up with someone so quick. I'll tell you what; I've never been so intimidated by that stupid blinking line in my life. Well, except when I have writer's block. I'm actually pretty nervous, writing this and all. I don't really know what to say. Never been good at this kind of stuff...when it comes to guys.

From,

Ripley B.

P.S. It's thundering here and it's the middle of December. Something's not right about that...

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"What should I say?"

"Uh, maybe something about yourself. I don't know. I'm not good at this stuff. Ask Kyoya."

"Kyoya-senpai...?"

"Say how nervous you are as well. That will probably make her feel more relaxed and allow her to open up a bit more. Be formal in your letters until you're comfortable accepting and sending her letters, then you can be casual. Ask if she's a writer. She mentioned something about writer's block, did she not? Find some common ground, that's the best way to approach this kind of situation."

"Oh, okay. I'm going to ask her about snow."

"Snow? That was fuckin' random."

"Shut up, Tara."

"Say that again and you'll find yourself with another black eye."

"Will you two calm down? I can't hear myself think."

"Sorry..." the blonde and ash said together.

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Dear Ripley,

Yeah, I'm pretty nervous too. I'm like you, I've never been really good at talking to people. My brother was always the one that did the talking. I would've written something sooner, but I was also intimidated by that blinking line. My mind drew blanks on what to write about. Hey, are you a writer or something? You mentioned something about writer's block.

From,

Hikaru H.

P.S. It's snowing here. Do you like snow?

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Tara had rented one of her stupid, idiotic John Wayne movies. Kyoya watched it without a word, though he did say it was a well deserved break from all the zombie flicks she forced him to watch with her. He was never one for the gut-opening, intestine-eating gore that happened all over those movies. Hikaru complained though; westerns were all the same. The hero always conquered, the bad guys were thrown behind bars, and the main character always ended up with the beautiful, but dainty lady, or they ended up with the badass, sexy, female outlaw, and settled down in a nice house surrounded by miles and miles of dust and cacti with a cow named Bessie. He'd rather watch something mind-numbing, a movie that didn't hold much plot so he didn't have to pay attention.

It felt nice having people over for once. He, however, didn't like the way Tara cuddled up next to Kyoya while they watched the screen. Her arms were around his waist, head on his chest, and her legs curled up close to her. His left arm was stretched across the arm of the couch, his other draped over Tara's shoulders, pulling her even closer to him. It was weird having them do something couple-like. He was so used to their normalcy towards one another. He didn't like it...no, he hated it. All throughout the movie, they were too engrossed on what was going on that they didn't notice his staring.

He remembered the last time he had a woman press into him like that during a movie. They had been watching a horror movie, a very suspenseful one as well, and his date had grabbed his shirt, burying her face into his chest. He had wrapped his arm around her comfortingly, his other hand coming over to stroke her hair gently. He had cooed gently to her, telling her it was just make-believe, and that he was there for her. She had been one of the women he adored the most out of all the ones he had been with. He thought she was going to be the one that helped him get over Haruhi.

She hadn't been, otherwise, he wouldn't have been sitting here feeling envious over Kyoya. He had told that woman about his thoughts that pertained to Haruhi- how he was still in love with her, everything. He told her that he was willing to move on with her, ready to be in a relationship with her. Told her that he wanted her to be the one he moved on with. He thought they were close enough for him to tell her all that, but they weren't. He had thought wrong. The day after, she wouldn't return his calls, she wouldn't answer her door when he went to visit her in person, she had moved on already. Months later, she sent him a postcard from Bali, saying that she was on her honeymoon with her new husband, and that she thought of him on occasion and hoped he was doing all right.

He had ripped and burned that fuckin' postcard.

Hikaru stood up, walking towards the kitchen. He pushed the door open, the door swinging shut after he went through. He was hot; he wanted to be cold. Hikaru shuffled over to the window, pushing it open, sticking his head outside. The street below was busy with cars, horns beeping and blaring as they passed by. Sirens could be heard and police lights could be seen down the street, rushing through the intersection. Probably another burglary or hijacking. The snow continued to drift down from the skies, flakes falling in his dark hair, some landing on his neck and melting instantly, his neck becoming wet and cold. He could see people passing from where he was. One man was walking hurriedly down the sidewalk, head ducked down, hands shoved deep in his pockets. A couple was walking slowly, looking like they were enjoying the cold and snow, holding mitten-covered hands.

A sigh escaped his lips, head hanging low.

What was everyone else doing right now? Kaoru texted him earlier a picture of a gown he had designed for his girlfriend since they were attending a party one of his clients was throwing, so Hikaru knew what he was doing. He knew where Kyoya and Tara were, most likely stealing kisses now that he was out of the room. Mori was probably practicing kendo while Syd watched him. Hunny was most likely scrambling about, trying to prepare for the babies, and Reiko was probably being her normal, slow-moving self. Hikaru still couldn't believe they were having kids, twins nonetheless.

And he couldn't believe he was going to be a godparent with Haruhi.

He wondered what she was doing right now. Defending a client? The most probable choice was that she was cooking something or walking around hand-in-hand with Tamaki. Hikaru grasped his hair, gritting his teeth. That could've been him right now if only he had worked harder. What did that brainless idiot have that he didn't? He could be kind, he could be sensitive, he could give her everything she wanted or needed.

Who was he kidding? He wasn't any of those things. He was harsh, childish, possessive, insensitive, everything that Tamaki wasn't. That's why Haruhi had never been attracted to him. He was always clueless when it came to comforting others, he never had the right words to say, while Tamaki knew exactly what to say, knew exactly what to do to make someone feel better.

He was envious of that idiot, but he owed so much to him.

The movie had ended, he didn't hear the high buzzing of the television as it had been turned off.

"Kyoya, I worry about him. You think he's going to be alright?" he heard Tara ask.

There was a sad silence before Kyoya answered, "This one...I'm not so sure."

Hikaru buried his head in his arms, careful to not hit his nose. If Kyoya didn't have an answer, Hikaru knew he was in trouble. He needed to get over it, he really did. He was driving himself crazy with the constant thoughts of her. What would she think of him if she saw the state he was in? Haruhi...she would try and comfort him, but she would find some way to remind him that she was with Tamaki, basically telling him that she could never be his. God, he felt sick.

"My God it's cold in here." he heard Tara mutter.

He looked over his shoulder to see Tara standing by the door, rubbing her arms.

"Hikaru, Kyoya and I are leaving. We'll come back in the morning depending on the weather."

Before she could get out the door, Hikaru stood up, but bashed his head against the window. He groaned, rubbing the back of his head carefully, turning towards her for she had paused in her exit to see if he was okay. Tara's expression was full of concern, but he knew it wasn't just for his head, but for his well-being. Great, another thing that would keep him awake at night.

"Can...can you and...you know what? Never mind."

"Go ahead. Say it."

"Can you and Kyoya stay here for the night. I...I like the company."

"Hikaru..."

He held up his hands, wishing that he could reach her from where he stood. "You two can take my bed and I'll take the couch! And, um, I'll get breakfast in the morning! You guys can sleep in and everything! I promise I won't be a bother!"

Before he knew it, Tara's arms were around him. He'd never been hugged by her before. He knew she hated physical contact. She must've been really worried about him...

"Hikaru, of course we'll stay." And with that, she kissed him on the cheek, stepping back to run a hand through his hair. The affection wasn't romantic, he knew that, but it was tender and loving. He had never seen her like this before. The look in her eyes was full of sadness and understanding. He wanted more of it. He wanted more of that affection. At the moment, he yearned for it. Before she could pull away completely, he wrapped his arms around her, not giving a care how she felt about it. He buried his face into her shoulder, clutching to the back of her sweater. He felt her return the embrace and that was what he wanted.

He didn't notice, but Kyoya had entered the room awhile back, and was now leaning on his shoulder against the doorframe, arms crossed. He held the same look in his eyes, the look of sadness, when he came in to see Tara and Hikaru holding each other close. For once in his life, Kyoya had no idea what to do about the situation on hand. He, too, worried about Hikaru's well-being when he and Tara were away. Kyoya didn't know whether the younger man was simply in a funk or was severely depressed. When he asked questions, Hikaru wouldn't answer or give them answers that didn't give away anything. Everything he knew about the way Hikaru was feeling was simply through observation.

"Thank you...Tara-senpai..." Hikaru whispered.

He felt his eyes water and the tears started spilling over, causing him to pull Tara as close as he could to him.

"Thank you..."

Is it pathetic that my eyes started watering while writing this?