Confusion

Tossing his cell phone onto his stupidly expensive nightstand next to his bed. Kaoru sighed dramatically, throwing himself on to his large bed, looking up towards the ceiling.

He was left, after his trip to America, both mentally, and physically exhausted. His back ached from the long car rides around, and still managed to possess a sharp kink in his neck from the trip home.

He knew it was near to almost impossible to find one specific person, America was unfortunately a fairly large place, and there was no guaranty the man he was looking for, would even be in he state of California, sense his family members don't know his exact location, but that would make things easier if he were.

Which was probably why he wasn't, god just loved to make things difficult for Kaoru.

Hasn't he ben through enough?

He took a deep breath, ruffling his fingers through his damp hair, just getting out of the shower. He was too tired to do anything but sleep, but his mind was wondering too much that he couldn't.

It made sense in a way, he had after all, just ran around city's in California, such as towns around Suzuki's fathers ranch, half of San Diego, and had some employee's from the office ask around other big city's. But there was one slight detail that he realized he was missing.

He had no idea what the man looked like, until he actually located the ranch and Suzuki's other grandmother who was on her fathers side, she had given him a picture; or rather, he grabbed it off a shelf, asked who is was of, and stuffed it into his pocket when she wasn't looking.

Kaoru blinked his golden eyes, reaching over, grabbing a pillow to stuff under his head, not having enough energy to actually crawl all the way onto bed to sleep, and decided to just stay were he was already laying, he'd fall asleep when ever his body would let him to.

He turned over on his side, Squishing his cheek against the expensive cloud like pillow, looking over at his night stand, where he had thrown his phone at, and where he had sat down a little square box.

He looked at it for a few long moments. Earlier a few months ago, he had found it stashed away deep in his drawer in his closet, completely forgotten about until he was looking for an old watch that went with an outfit.

He had remembered stuffing it away where he wouldn't see it, a long time ago. He hadn't told anyone about it, not even his twin, but it was a engagement ring. At first it upset him looking at it, but now, he couldn't bring himself to stop looking at it.

Three years ago, he had bought it for Kazumi, who he apparently loved back then. Knowing his brother would have freaked out to the point of an early age heart attack, Kaoru never said anything about it, but couldn't get rid of it either.

Kaoru sighed heavily again, reaching for the small black velvet box, giving it a questionable look before popping the lid open gently with his thumb. Gazing intently at the ring hidden safely inside.

Down the sides were three solid silver strands braided together, meeting up at the top, where a small diamond was sitting happily, sunk in the silver, shining in the low light the lamp gave off from side.

He was still finding old things from her, even after all this time.

Its funny how your first love never go's away.

Its not like he loved her anymore though. In fact they barely talk anymore, other than a few friendly emails here and there over time, only because they still considered themselves friends.

He rubbed the small diamond with his thumb, tilting it left to right to make it shimmer. He looked at it a little longer before shutting the top lid with his index finger, tossing it into the drawer of his nightstand. Turning on his side, clapping the lights off, with no effort.

Kaoru looked around the dark room, lit only by the dim moon light that was creeping in through the large window, piercing the thin opening between the drapes.

He laid there silently for a while, sticking his arm under his pillow, staring at the darkened ceiling until he fell into a peaceful over night slumber.

A few days later, at the eldest Hitachiin twins household.

"What happened to the teddy bear?!"

Hikaru sighed, laying his temple down on his fist, resting his elbow on the table, watching Tamaki play on the floor with the triplets, and his adoptive daughter Asami, He sat at the table, sitting next to Ayame, Hunny, his wife Reiko, holding their eight month son, Ryuu. And Mori and his fiancé, Megumi.

Hikaru blinked, glancing towards his children playing on the floor in a tight circle, drawing strange things on paper, torturing little Asami with their crude comments on everything.

"Milord, if you're going to complain, don't look at them."

Tamaki gaped his mouth open, gripping a shredded up yellow teddy bear he remembered giving the triplets when they were born. His facial expression turned to annoyance as he looked at Hikaru, who didn't seem like he cared that his children destroyed a perfectly good, memorable stuffed animal.

"Look what they did," the blond gasped dramatically, his voice raised to gain attention as he gripped the arm and the rest of the body of the disembodied stuffed bear. "They completely mutilated it!"

"Well, what do you want me to do about it?"

"You just let your children run around the house destroying their toys?" Tamaki huffed. Touching the arm to the stuffing oozing socket, as if trying to reattach it in its formal place, even thought he was unsuccessful. "You need to watch them more closely. They'll destroy the house."

"And you're getting all this from just a crippled stuffed bear?" the Hitachiin rolled his eyes. "They're three, they break things, so what?"

"Haruhi would be appalled to hear you say that," Tamaki glared, setting the poor unfortunate animal down on the table as he pointed to the triplets who were innocently coloring by themselves next to Asami, who was telling them what color would be best for what they were coloring.

"We just wanted to see what was inside." Hanako muttered, scribbling messily on a picture of the Eiffel tower, with a red crayon. Even when Asami told her that blue would look best.

"It looks like the same stuff that came out of our stuffed turtle," Keito added, poking his cheek with a yellow crayon thoughtfully, narrowing his eyes at a picture of a bird, not knowing weather to color it green or pink.

Hayato glared, snapping his black crayon in half on purpose, making Asami flinch. "Wonder if that's what real animals look like inside too."

Tamaki's mouth fell open, eyes widened as he turned his gaze between Hikaru and the triplets. "D-did you hear that?! they want to cut real animals open now!"

"Don't twist their words around," Hikaru scolded, blinking his half lidded eyes as he looked over at his kids, making little Asami tear up when they accused her of not knowing what color a bear is if she hadn't never seen one before. "Quit picking on a bunch of three-year olds."

"I'm not picking on them," Tamaki pouted. "I just don't understand how kids of my Haruhi could end up so..."

"Wahh! daddy!" Asami cried, tears welding at the edge of her eyes. Pointing an accusing finger towards the triplets. "They're being mean, they keep saying scary things!"

Tamaki puckered out his bottom lip, picking up, and plopping his daughter down on his lap. "It's okay, that's just in the Hitachiin gene to be like that, it can't be helped."

A year after their wedding, Tamaki and Ayame adopted four-year old Asami, who was half Chinese and half Japanese. She had long brown hair, lighter than Haruhi's, going down to her lower back, being pulled up in two pigtails. Her biological parents were just nineteen and twenty, not wanting any kids so early, they gave her up. And Tamaki instantly grew a tight relationship with her, just after a week.

He and Ayame, (Or rather just him) were already thinking about adopting another one, possibly a boy, sense Ayame couldn't actually have children.

Hikaru let out a exaggerated sigh as he looked at the clock, wondering why it was taking Haruhi so long to get off work. He then looked down at his digital watch on his wrist and watched as the three kids still on the floor, Hayato grabbing his siblings wrists, leading them to the door, completely forgetting about their coloring utensils they had just thrown on the rug.

Hikaru huffed. "Well at least my kids aren't sissy's."

"Your kids are mean, look, they always make Asami cry."

"She's the one who can't take a little harmless teasing, you sure she isn't your biological daughter?"

Tamaki blinked, one part of his brain not knowing weather to take that as a insult or not, as the most used part of his brain made him grin happily, throwing his arm out, almost dropping the vary girl who was sitting on his lap, on the floor.

"She is like me isn't she?" he beamed. "Honestly I wouldn't be able to tell if I were someone else, I'm enrolling her in Ouran next week, the semester's already started, she'd be a transfer student, she'll be in preschool though but wouldn't be in the same class as the triplets, and she's already learning French from her privet tutor."

"...I don't believe I asked for all those details, and I wasn't trying to complement you, being like you basically means her life is doomed."

"..."

"Just saying."

"...How insulting."

"Its pathetic how long it takes you to register an insult."

"Well, look who's picking on kids now," Tamaki gasped, setting his daughter down when she told him that she wanted to go and play again, being one to recover quickly as her adoptive father. "Who tells kids their life is doomed?"

"You started it, just because my kids stabbed a stuffed bear with a pair safety scissors, you think they're murderers." The auburn haired man pointed out, his temple twitching irritably.

"If you know how they did it, then you must have ben watching them, weren't you?" Tamaki's hands started shaking. "You're just as bad as them."

"They got it from me, moron."

"Well I hope they don't develop your mouth."

"Aren't you full of manners today," Hikaru muttered, narrowing his eyes as he looked towards the direction his children escaped to, out of his sight. "And to think they actually care about you, gave you a nickname and everything."

Tamaki grinned, looking back at him. "Really~?"

"They can say your name with out messing up too."

"They do~?"

"Haruhi even taught them how to say, Acquaintance."

"..."

Hikaru snickered, grinning at exaggerated sigh. And was about to check his watch for the time again, when a panicked shout came from the kitchen.

"What on earth are you three doing?! Master Hayato please put the knife down!"

"..."

"..."

Tamaki turned white as he brought himself out of the corner, inching closer to Asami, looking over his shoulder just to make sure one of them wasn't behind him.

Hikaru noticed his nervous reaction, sighing, he stuck his cell phone in his pocket, standing up from his chair to find out what his beastly children were doing to the maids now, hopefully it wasn't at all like what Tamaki was thinking.

After getting out of sight of his friends. Hikaru hesitated before opening the door to the kitchen, hearing the maid scold his sons for playing with kitchen utensils. He sighed, and peeked his head in. Not able to see any of his kids due to the cabinets being taller than his three year olds.

"What do you think you're going?" He asked, his arms crossed over his chest as he stepped into the room. Getting the maids attention when he walked in. Seeing Hayato and Keito standing next to their steps stools, with Hanako standing behind them, holding a jar of jelly he guessed she got from he fridge.

Kimiko whirled around, her face red with embarrassment as she had her hands on her hips, holding a chees cutter and a bread knife in her one hand. "Oh, Mr. Hitachiin, they were just playing with the kitchen utensils again."

"I thought we said we weren't going to do that after the last time you cut yourselves," Hikaru twitched, rubbing his temple, wondering why his own children choose not to listen to him; or anyone for that matter, other than Haruhi.

"We weren't playing." Hayato insisted, scowling at the cutting board that was laid out on the counter, refusing to look at his father.

"We were going to help mommy." Keito admitted, pointing towards the microwave at the time. "Mommy always comes home sooner than this."

"Always five." Hanako added. Narrowing her eyes to act sad. "Don't want mommy using all her time to cook, we do it so she can play with us when she gets home."

Hikaru raised his eyebrow suspiciously, knowing that they act sad and lie to get out of being in trouble. He looked them over, checking to his of his belongings had any injuries then sighed. Completely drained from chasing them around all day. "Well if you're hungry than let the maids cook you something."

"Not hungry." They all assured in unison.

"Than why are you trying to make things?" Hikaru slapped her palm against his forehead, getting ready to explode, not getting what the children just said.

"We were going to cook so mommy could play with us," Hayato blurted out again, glaring and instantly irritated that his father wasn't understanding they're intentions. "We said that."

"Well Mommy's a pain in the neck and dose things that she doesn't need to do," Hikaru sighed. grabbing Keito, lifting him up off his step stool, shooing Hayato off his. "Why don't you go play with your toys, like normal kids your age do."

"Why? daddy and uncle Kao never did that." Hayato muttered.

"Did I ever say that we were normal?"

"...No."

"Okay than."

"We don't wanna be normal."

"Why are you so difficult?"

"Why is daddy so difficult?"

"To irritate mommy, but there's no excuse for you three."

The triplets glared, puckering out their lips determinedly, walking single file as they stalked to the kitchen door, perturbed that their plan was once again foiled. Though Hanako stopped turning around and walked back to her father, frowning irritably, sticking her arms up.

Hikaru quirked his brow, confused as to what she wanted, then noticed how she was looking at him as if he was a moron for looking confused, cause it was obvious what she wanted without saying anything. "What?" He finally said.

"Up," she grumbled. Wiggling her fingers as she kept her arms up, waiting for him to pick her up. "Pick me up."

He snickered, folding his arms, "Why would I do that?"

"Because your daddy, its in your contract."

"I don't remember reading that when I signed it." He grinned, playing with the poor girls fragile emotions.

"It was written in fine print."

Giving up, Hikaru rolled his eyes, sticking his hands under her arms, lifting her up, checking her for anything that would come to harm to his clothes of course, before holding her securely at his side. "There, happy now?"

"Almost," Hanako assured, leaning over his shoulder, stretching out her small arm, reaching for something off the counter, wrapping her fingers around a small jar of super glue their mother took away form them and put it out of their reach. She looked at them hid it in her shirt. "Okay, put me down."

"I thought you wanted up?" Hikaru asked. Looking a her as she whirled her head around, he sighed once more and swished her around, placing her down on her feet.

"I did, but now I want down," she said as she felt the floor underneath her feet. "Can I barrow daddy's phone?"

"...Why?" Hikaru hesitated. Looking down at her, trying to finger out what she could possibly want it for.

"Because I need it," Hanako said, looking over her shoulders, knowing her brothers were right outside the door waiting for her. She nodded her head and held out her small hand, waiting for him to give it to her. "You can have it back tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?"

"Yes."

Hikaru put his finger to his chin, pretending to be in deep thought about what she was asking, pretending to consider it. "Daddy needs his phone," he said, making her glare, then turned to the table, grabbing another phone from it, handing it to her. "But you can use this one, its yours anyway."

"But that's a play phone," she said, looking at her dad as if he was a complete idiot. "It doesn't work."

"Use your imagination."

"It doesn't work that way daddy, please?"

"What do you need it for?"

"To call mommy."

"Ah, no," Hikaru said instantly. Placing his hands on her small slender shoulders, turning her around. "She's at work, you'd be bothering her, and she'd get mad at you, do you want mommy mad at you?"

"She wouldn't get mad if we told her that you left us alone to go uncle Kao's house and Keito fell down the stairs, she'd come right home." Hanako pouted, reaching for her father pocket, in attempt to get his phone from him.

Hikaru opened his mouth, ready to shoot down her dreams and to tell her that, that would work, until Haruhi were to actually get home and find out that none of that was true, when the front door made a creak sound of opening, and slammed shut.

Hanako flinched, pulling her hand away as she heard her brothers call out form the other side of the door. "Mommy's home!"

Hikaru went to grab her, but before he could she was already far out of his reach, running through the push open door just as Tamaki started off on a huge rant, saying things that were too muffled by distance to hear.

He watched as he saw glimpse of his sons disappear from the crack in the door, then checked his pocket again for his cell phone, just to make sure she didn't pick-pocket him before running off.

"..."

Yep, he was phoneless.

Darn it, how did she do that?

He pushed all possibility's aside to the matter and looked towards Kimiko who was still just standing there, putting the utensils away, she shrugged unknowingly.

Following the direction where his daughter dashed off to, Hikaru stuck his hands in his pockets of his light hoodie, chilled by the sudden draft he caught from nowhere, he stepped out of the kitchen, and out of the odd room, making his way into the living room where everyone was still at, seeing Tamaki and the triplets all surrounding Haruhi, who had just stepped into the house, with the dramatic blond yelling in her face.

"Here Haruhi do you need an icepack? somebody get Haruhi an icepack!"

"Tamaki its okay, get off please, I have to change."

"But Haruhi, its going to swell up!"

"No it's not."

"Yes it will!"

"What are you even doing here?"

"Don't change the subject!"

Stalking up to them, Hikaru shoved Hunny and Tamaki away from Haruhi like curtains, a dark aura around him like a glove, his bangs hiding his facial expression, though he looked down at her curiously.

Haruhi let out a little squeak as her husband grasped her chin in his fingers, bringing both his face and her face, closer together, looking turning her face to both sides, giving her the normal check over. But didn't see anything.

"...There's... Nothing there," Hikaru said out loud. Blinking his golden confused eyes as he turned to look at Tamaki, who was making a big deal about nothing, literally. "What's wrong with her?"

Haruhi sighed, wiggling her way out of his hand, flipping a piece of her bangs away form her eyes. 'You know, some people would think its rude to just walk up to someone like that' She mused to herself.

"What do you mean, 'what's wrong with her?'" Tamaki gasped, pointing directly at the brunettes face. Seeing a tiny purple mark on her temple. "Don't you see that?"

Hikaru blinked, placing his hands firmly on his wife's shoulders just as she was about to get away, and flipped her hair away from her face, getting a good look at what Tamaki was being melodramatic about. Then gaped his mouth open as if he just saw a horror movie where he sold his soul to Kyouya.

Scary.

"What the hell?!" Hikaru exclaimed, glaring at what he was sure was a fresh bruise on her face. "What did you do? how did you get that? who ever it was, I'll brake his face."

His face? honestly, where is he getting 'him' from?

Haruhi grunted irritably, shooing his concerned face away so she could at least take a breath. "Would you get off? I just got home for pete sakes, quit it."

"Tamaki," Ayame spoke up, cleaning her throat to get her idiotic husbands attention. "We should really get going, have you forgotten that you still need to pick up your documents from your office?"

Tamaki pouted, looking away from Haruhi as he looked towards his wife. "Can't we do that later? Haruhi just got home."

"You said 'later' three days ago."

"...Okay, Fine."

Hikaru turned, watching Hunny and Reiko follow Tamaki, Ayame and Asami out the door, narrowing his eyes before turning back to his wife who he still held firmly in the chair she sat in. "Anyway!"

"No."

"...You didn't even know what I was going to say."

"No, but I already know that I don't want to hear it."

The auburn haired man scowled, looking down at her suspiciously, "But that, by your eyes, what did you do?"

Haruhi sighed, swatting his hand away once again, adjusting herself on the cushion. "It's just a bruise Hikaru, god, why are you so possessive all of a sudden? don't you have work to do?"

"Oh, Hikaru its just a bruise," Hikaru mocked her, in the highest pitched voice he was going to let himself use. "Do you remember last time you came home with a bruise on your face?"

"I do, but this ones different," she muttered angrily, shoving his hands away as she stood up, straightening the bottom of her two-piece dress suit. "I just-... I went to my client's house to talk with him, and when I was there I hit my head on one of his low kitchen cabinets."

"You... Were at a strange mans house?"

"Yes? and he's not strange, he's quite normal actually."

"...Why?"

"I just told you, he's my client, I had to, he has two kids he's trying to keep custody of, he couldn't just leave them my themselves to have an office visit."

"...But still."

"Hikaru, you don't need to get all jealous, I wasn't doing anything," she assured truthfully, rolling her eyes as she turned around, getting ready to walk up the stairs. "I'm not something you have to keep close tabs on every second of the day."

"Well excuse me for being concerned." Hikaru snapped, checking his head as he heard her go up stairs. "You're the one clumsy enough to hit your head on a cabinet, go to a mans house alonse and come hoem with a bruise, watch me not freak out!"

"Whatever, Hikaru."

"God, you're so infuriating!"

"You're the one to talk!"

The triplets blinked, all three confused as to why their mother was so upset and why she completely ignored them just then.

Okay, First off, so no one jumps to conclusions. The bruise on Haruhi's face this time, is actually just from hitting her head on a low cabinet, her client is a vary nice man who just divorced his wife and wants one of the two kids full time. She also had a vary long day at work, which triggered her and Hikaru's little argument just now.

Poor Kids...

Also, I don't know when this will be mentioned, so I'm just going to say it here.

Mori is engaged, his proposed to his girlfriend who was never mentioned in Strawberry Shampoo, her name is Megumi.

Hunny and Reiko have a son named Ryuu, his name means Dragon Spirit. I thought it fit so I stuck with it.

Kyouya got married last year, to a girl he was engaged to in Strawberry Shampoo, and her name is... Wait for it... Renge!

And Poor little Kaoru is still dating Suzuki, and has gotten nowhere in his life with her since Strawberry Shampoo. Poor him.

Thank you all for reading, and for the reviews. I'm Sorry this chapter took so long to post, I'm moving to another house and I can't find time anywhere to get on my laptop. I'm sorry! Moving is so Stressful. ;;