Un Mauvais Reve

Chapter 3: Au Revoir, Mon Ami

A/N: I kind of rushed through it, but hope it's enjoyable!

Disclaimer: I do not own Ouran High School Host Club.

Haruhi crossed her legs as she saw Mori and Hunny walk out the hospital. She lingered near the psychiatric ward of the hospital, sitting on a bright red bench located next to a small lake. A feeling of calmness stole the moment as orderlies and candy stripers led patients around the building. Trees surrounded the area beneath the bright sun, providing coolness and clearness. She let out a sigh of frustration as she saw Tamaki's mirage on the other side of the lake, waving vehemently. Block words shouted in her head impatiently. He. Will. Never. Leave. Ever.

"Am I going CRAZY?" The brunette threw her face in her hands. She checked her surroundings again. The bench was red. The sky was blue. Yet a supposedly

brain dead Tamaki stood next to her, lively and annoying as ever.

"So, you're brain dead." Haruhi mused unenthusiastically.

"So, your bra is showing."

"What? You're supposed to be gone! You're ruining the moment!" Haruhi snapped, as she adjusted her undergarment. She became feverish and tired as the boisterous young man took a seat near her.

"I thought we were stating the obvious." Tamaki giggled uncontrollably, grabbing hold of his thin abdomen.

"No, we aren't. I can't do it." Haruhi fought back the tears and swallowed down her depression. Denial spread through her body hotly.

"Well, you know what you have to do." Tamaki gently said as he laid his hand on her shoulder. The touch felt eerily thin and ghostly. But his presence was clear.

"No. I don't know what to do," Haruhi replied firmly. Unable to make eye contact with Tamaki, she twirled her thumbs uncertainly.

"Odd, your tone of voice sounded so succinct."

"Blah," Haruhi grunted in a very non-Haruhi way. A sharpness in her head struck as she let out a wince of pain. A combination of pain, confusion, and worries surrounded her heard. It hurt ineffably, but Haruhi bit her tongue.

"Why did you come here anyway? We barely knew each other, and then we broke off all connections."

"I loved you, and ironically, I still do," the brunette stated uncomfortably. Emotional truth was never an easy thing for her to admit. She lived by the rules of reality and staunchness, but she lacked the faith and psyche of the commoner.

"You can't love a dead person, can you? Say goodbye." Tamaki whispered curtly. His back arched back gracefully, terribly contrast to Haruhi's slouching subdued figure. The argument felt mutually futile, but it continued.

"You're not dead." Haruhi argued. "Well, at least he isn't dead. The heart is still working. We keep all our things at heart don't we?" She let out a breath of despair, balling her fist up to her chin.

"Why do you think," Tamaki asked, "that you've seen me all this time?"

"I honestly don't know how to answer that." Haruhi tried to ease the migraine building in her head as the blonde chuckled lightly.

"I wonder if you'll miss me when I'm gone." Clouds abruptly gathered around the sun as those words slipped from his mouth. Grayness stretched across the sky, depriving hope but replacing courage. Simultaneously, a long stretch silence estranged the two people.

"Of course I will, you idiot." Haruhi balled her fist onto the bench to distract the ripping pain inside her head. The interaction of her fist to the bench lacked impact, leaving Haruhi resilient from the pain.

"Why do you always keep things to yourself? You're in pain. Do something about it. Get pissed. Scream. Stop having so much confidence in adversity and keeping everything quiet and under pressure. Do what you want and have hope. All this time, you were dealing with the problem realistically, and that doesn't always work in real situations."

"I try to retain self control." Haruhi's mouth warped into a grim as she looked up at the sky, gray and cold. "Dang, I hope there's no thunder. Ah, shoot my head is wringing."

"Just release yourself." And at that moment, a crystallizing moment in time paused, and Haruhi knew what she had to do. He lead her to the room where the real Tamaki lay lifelessly on the hospital cot. His lips were chapped, his hand motionless, and she saw him as a mere corpse. But there was a chance for goodbye. And this was a chance she was going to take.

"Go on, Haruhi. Just do it." He gave her a last awkward pat on her left shoulder, firm, solid, but unfortunately their last interaction. She looked back, and stared him in his gentle violet eyes ultimately and faced the pallid figure next to her. The odd brightness and calmness of the room's wall satirically mocked her melancholia. Tamaki's situation felt anything but vivid and real; everything felt fantastical and irrational, as her head spun.

But she knew she had to end the story, happy ending or not.

Sigh. Here she comes.

"Damn, I'm still not ready." Haruhi choked as tears welled. She fought them hard, but finally submitted. She wiped her tears quickly on her sleeve.

"I can't believe I'll never see you again. Ever. A few years without seeing you, then you're gone forever."

Sigh A smile formed under her tears as she stroked Tamaki's cold hands. Real and cold.

"Remember when I broke the vase, and you made me become the host club's dog? I was so scared. I never thought I would finish the debt."

"I guess what I'm trying to say is that," Haruhi paused,"you were always there to help me. Like a teacher. A lover. A friend. You gave me opportunity. Hope. But I guess all that's gone wasted." She gazed back at the door, and a combination of relief and shock shot through her veins as she realized Tamaki no longer stood behind her.

"You've always been my friend. And optimism."

"Au revoir, mon ami." She let go of the grip she had on Tamaki's hand, and as if by ironic phenomena, a noise interrupted the final moment.

The EKG let out a long beep in the silence as Haruhi drowned herself in inconsolable tears. Rain, thunder, lightning—all those things happened. But fear was ripped out of Haruhi and replaced with a worse substitute—acceptance

Kyouya and Hikaru both entered the room after watching from the waiting room. The guided her out the room, and into the pouring rain, to go home, rest. It pained both of them to see her in such a state, but they both knew the result of all.

She was going to be okay.