~Chapter 4

Kaoru's mind drifted to strange places. He dreamed about rats, scurrying about his mansion, the disgusting creatures completely swarming over his room, his desk, his bed. His mind briefly flickered to the maid that worked for the Hitachiins when Kaoru and Hikaru were small; the way she looked at them, as she disappeared into the darkness below. She was smiling, but it wasn't kindly. It was as if she were looking at helpless animals in a cage.

Back in his dream, he felt an inexorable amount of stress at the rodent pestilence covering his abode. The utter revulsion was terrifying in a way, and he covered his eyes to block the awful sight.

'What the…?'

He looked at the tiny, pink paws in front of his face. He was a rat.

"…-ten milligrams, stat!…" and unfamiliar voice faded in and out of his consciousness.

'hey…HEY!' Kaoru looked up at the ceiling of his familiar, yet unfamiliar room. Scientists, with masked faces and latex gloved hands, reached down from seemingly nowhere with enormous hands, randomly grabbing a rodent from the hoard. The rat's frantic shrieks of horror were so loud, they made Kaoru's ears bleed. It's fear was contagious, and a feeling of pure mortification seeped throughout his entire body. Almost instinctively, he ran towards the giant hand.

'STOP!!'

"s-stop it…" The nurse glanced up from inserting the I.V., startled at the sudden mumbling.

"Pay him no mind, he's hallucinating from the fever." the Ootori doctor informed her in an urgent tone. The nurse nodded, curtly, and continued.

All of the rats started to scream. Kaoru bent over in pain, trying to block out the sound. His fell numb, as a gigantic white hand suddenly clenched around his body. He couldn't breathe…

"Heart beats erratic, he's going to crash!!" the doctor said in a strangely calm, but loud, voice. He pulled out the defibrillator as one of the nurses began prepping Kaoru's bruised and bloodied chest.

'Let me go, let me go, let me go!'

Kaoru desperately tried to struggle free from the hand, but a strange paralysis had overtaken him. The scientists stared at him, silently; they're enormous glasses reflecting a bright surgical light. They spoke, but he could not understand. Finally, one of the researchers shook his head, and waived in a disposing manner. He felt the hand drop him, and was overcome with an incredible falling sensation.

*THUD*

A powerful shock tore through his body, and Kaoru didn't dream anymore.

"That was close!" The nurse sighed in relief at the sound of the heart monitor beating rhythmically again.

With the breathing tube inserted and the emergency medications taking their affect, the doctor nodded his head in approval. "Call radiology and tell them we'll be there in five minutes. We need a full body scan." He prodded lightly around Kaoru's neck, chest, and abdomen, listening to him breathe. Another paramedic was cleaning a nasty gash on the side of his head. "Probably has a concussion, definitely has some broken bones, and I think his left lung has collapsed. We'll wait for the scans, and as soon as I think his heart can handle it, we'll prep for surgery." The nurse nodded, and began contacting the radiology department on the ambulance speaker.

'I think he's going to be alright. What a lucky, lucky kid! If they hadn't found him when they did, he would have suffocated!'

**

Hikaru's driver tried his best to keep up with the ambulance, and they arrived just as Kaoru was quickly being wheeled into the trauma center. Hikaru was wide awake again and immediately jumped out of the black car doors with a frantic energy. The doctor that had been in the ambulance immediately guessed his intentions, and intercepted them before Hikaru could manage to run through the sliding doors after all of the paramedics and nurses now surrounding his twin.

"He's okay right now." The doctor held up his hands as Hikaru almost plowed right through him.

"When can I see him?!"

"We're not sure about the extent of the damage to his chest, so I can't comment on the surgery," the doctor explained. "But!" he smiled brightly, "The important thing is he's stable right now, so we are optimistic that his chances of survival are pretty good!"

To the doctor's disappointment, Hikaru gave no sign of joy at the news. "P-pretty good?!" he choked, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Oh boy…" the doctor nervously ran a hand through his hair at the sight. Bedside manner had never been his strong point. "T-that came out wrong! Um…"

"What he's trying to say is that it's alright; your brother is strong." The doctor let out a sigh of relief, as his nurse stepped in and put an arm around Hikaru. She glared at her superior, but continued. "He's held on this long, and now he's in the care of some of the best, even if not the most THOUGHTFUL, doctors in the world."

The doctor grinned sheepishly at that last comment directed towards him, and followed the rest of his staff inside. Hikaru nodded at her words as he stared in the direction they had taken his brother. Haruhi walked to his side and put a hand on his shoulder.

"Let me show you two where the waiting room is," the nurse offered gently. "I promise, as soon as I hear word, I'll let you know."

It took the rest of the host club and the twin's parents a little longer to get to the hospital, and Kaoru was already in surgery when they arrived. After waiting a long time, the older, Hitachiin couple had fallen asleep from exhaustion in the corner of the room. Their mother was curled up with her feet on the seats, her head on Mr. Hitachiin's lap, as his head leaned over the back of the chairs against the wall. Everyone had moved to the other side to give them room to sleep.

One of the Hosts' stomachs began to growl, although no one could quite tell who it was. Luckily, Honey had the good sense to stop at a local restaurant on the ride over. He quickly produced an enticing, brown paper bag from his car in the parking lot, and with a still sunny, albeit more subdued, disposition, he walked from friend to friend to hand them them food.

"Sorry, I didn't know what everyone liked," he chattered as he gave a white Styrofoam box to Tamaki.

"As long as it's not cake, Honey-senpai, I'm most grateful," he smiled through tired eyes. Honey winked at him.

"Nah, Tama-chan! I ate all the cake I bought on the way over!"

"That's true," Mori was quick to affirm.

"Here you are, Haru-chan!" Haruhi was sitting next to Tamaki, and had been dozing lightly against his arm. She yawned as she took the box.

"Thanks, Honey-senpai."

She and Tamaki opened their boxes together and stared.

"What…interesting looking commoner food!" Tamaki tried to compliment. He took a bite of the strange looking dish and smiled. "Mmmm, it is tasty though! Hey, is this yogurt?"

Haruhi took a few bites. "Yeah, I think this is Indian food. I've never had it before. It's good and spicy!"

"Spicy, you say?" Kyoya suddenly perked up with an interested look. Honey laughed as he handed him a box.

"Yeah, they were the only place I saw that was open!" he chuckled. He walked up to Hikaru, who was leaning against the far wall next to the doors, with his arms folded. Honey held out a box to him with a smile. Hikaru took it and smiled back, but he didn't open it. Tamaki had already gulped down most of his meal when he called out to him.

"Hikaru! Come sit with us and eat! You've been standing in that same spot since we got here."

"I'm not really hungry."

"You should rest and eat now so you're not dying of exhaustion when Kaoru wakes up," Kyoya said between mouthfuls. Hikaru gave him a glance, but nothing more.

"Kyoya-senpai's right, Hikaru," Haruhi chimed in. She stood up and put her box on her seat. Having now finished his own, Tamaki's hand quickly snaked towards it, but Haruhi warded him off with one of her patented death glares. "We're probably going to be here a while." She leaned against the wall next to the twin as she spoke. He frowned.

"Why haven't we heard anything, yet?" he growled in frustration. "It's been three hours already!"

No one bothered to respond to his question. They all knew perfectly well he wasn't looking for an answer from them.

"Hikaru… Please sit down. You know Kaoru would hate to see you like this," Haruhi pleaded.

"Heh!" Hikaru exhaled with a caustic laugh. Everyone looked up, waiting for the verbal downpour they were sure that a comment like that would invoke, but it never came. Hikaru just bit his lip, and silently went back to watching the door. Haruhi stood next to him in solidarity, but she didn't press him any further. Tamaki, who had been gazing at them silently, smiled as he went to stand next to her. Honey and Mori quickly followed without a word, forming a longer line against the wall. Everyone, except Hikaru, glanced expectantly towards Kyoya, who was still happily enjoying his spicy cuisine. He suddenly caught everyone's eyes, and startled. "What!?" he mouthed without sound.

"Get over here!" Tamaki mouthed back, waving quickly.

"God…" Kyoya muttered, as he laid aside his meal. "Touchy feely moments really aren't my style…"

Cranky and tired from being awake the entire night, he clunked up to Hikaru's other side and slapped a hand, heavily, on his shoulder. Hikaru startled in surprise, and scowled at him. However, his face quickly softened when the shadow king gave him the most genuine smile any of the host club had ever seen.

They all watched the door, together, for a long time.

The nurse gasped as she entered the waiting room an hour later. She wasn't expecting all the faces that immediately greeted her right on the other side of the door. "Oh dear!! Umm…, Mr. and Ms. Hitachiin?" She glanced around all of the students crowding her towards the older couple in the corner.

"MOM, DAD, WAKE UP!!" Hikaru yelled. They immediately jolted awake, and at the sight of the nurse, rose quickly.

"You have news about our son?" Yuzuha asked, fearfully gripping her husband's arm. "Is he alright?"

"They are finishing surgery now," the nurse confirmed. "The doctor will be with you in a few moments, but I wanted to let you know that everything went well. We all think he will be just fine."

The collective sigh of relief was quite loud in the room.

"When can we see him!?" Hikaru pressed.

"Soon. We're taking him to intensive care now. He's going to be unconscious for a while, but should wake up some time tomorrow."

Yuzuha hugged her husband tightly, crying softly. He patted her, reassuringly, and smiled at the nurse. "Thank you!" he gushed. "We'll wait for the doctor, then."

Tamaki nearly lifted Hikaru off the ground in an enthusiastic embrace. Hikaru laughed, actually hugging him back for once. Everyone was punch drunk from lack of sleep, and the rest of the host club quickly descended on the pair, patting Hikaru on the back and hugging him in turn.

In the midst of all the commotion, the nurse bowed, and left the room. 'It's so nice to give people good news!' she thought, trying to push the memory of the previous day from her mind. She had to talk with the family of a boy, not much older than the Hitachiin twins, who hadn't been so lucky when a drunk diver hit his bicycle on his short ride home from work. 'Got to just hold on to moments like these, I guess… They're few and far between.'

**

Kaoru slowly opened his eyes. Sunlight was streaming through a large bay window in the whitewashed room onto his face. His first thought was of his brother. He blinked, groggily, and took a breath.

"Hika-OW!!" He grimaced and looked down. Under the thin blanket covering him, he could feel, rather than see, all the stitches and bandages covering his body. He saw the cast covering his entire left leg, and leaned his head into his shoulder with a sigh. Something prickly poked at his skin, and he slowly reached his hand up to feel a heavy bandage under his ear.

'Oh, man…I must look like Frankenstein right now…'

The thought didn't vex him too much, though. The discomfort he felt now was nothing compared to the night of the crash, and he was alive after all!

'Lucky, lucky me…'

He lazily looked at the door. He could hear his mother's muffled voice as she talked a phone in the hall. Blinking slowly, his eyes scanned the room and finally settled on what, or rather who, they were searching for. There was poor Hikaru, slumped over the side of a small armchair in the corner of the room, arms dangling, drooling onto the floor. He was sleeping like the dead. Kaoru smiled warmly. He hadn't been this happy to see his dumb brother's face in a very, very long time.

"Hikaru," his throat was so dry, his voice came out in barely a whisper. He swallowed and tried again. "Hikaru?"

There was a sudden pause in the light snoring, and a second later, Hikaru's head snapped up, eyes wide open. Immediately seeing that his brother was awake, he jumped off the chair, wiping the drool from his face.

"KAORU!"

He raced to the bed in such a speed, that Kaoru thought he was going to jump right on top of him. He flinched, but then relaxed as Hikaru stopped just short of his face. "Kaoru! You're awake! Oh man, you REALLY gave us a scare!" his mouth was running at lightening speed, and his voice was probably a little louder than he meant it to be. Kaoru blinked at him, as the tirade continued. "What were you thinking!? Never mind, I don't want to know! We looked for you all night! Everyone was really worried! I WAS REALLY WORRIED! Why did you take my bike?! I knew you couldn't handle that thing. You sure wrecked it good, huh? Ha ha!" Hikaru started to laugh, but it quickly began to fade into sobbing, as he leaned over the bed, gripping the sheets tightly. "You idiot!!" he cried, shaking his head from side to side. "How could you? How could you do that to me?!"

It took him a moment, but Kaoru smiled in the gentle way he so often did whenever Hikaru was upset. He put his hand on his brother's clenched fist, and squeezed it lightly.

"I'm sorry, Hikaru... I know you're angry. I'm really sorry."

**

Yuzuha had wrapped up the emergency conference call with her staff, as she had suddenly become absent from fashion week.

Opening the door slowly, she peered inside to check on her boys. Having fallen asleep again, Hikaru was curled up next to Kaoru on the small hospital bed, holding his arm protectively. Kaoru was still awake, and he glanced up at his mother as she entered quietly. Almost tip-toeing up to the other side of the bed, she smiled at him with tears in her eyes.

"Hi, mom," Kaoru whispered.

"Hi, sweetheart!" She whispered back, and gently took his free hand in hers. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I got thrown off a cliff, but these pain meds make it pretty alright," he grinned. "Still hard to sleep, though."

"I'll bring you some books later," she offered.

"What about your show?" Kaoru asked, wide eyed. "This is the busiest time of year for you, isn't it?"

"Oh, Kaoru, none of that really matters to me right now," she pulled a small stool over next to him. "Look at him!" She nodded toward Hikaru. "Sleeping like a baby, I'm glad."

"How long was I out for?"

"A couple of days. They had to perform surgery on one of your lungs and reset three ribs. They also had to fix your knee and ankle," she nodded toward his large cast.

"Is that where the car hit me?" Kaoru asked rather simply. His mother stared at him with a blank expression.

"Car?"

"Yeah, you know," Kaoru sighed, trying to move the arm Hikaru was holding. It was starting to fall asleep. "The one that nearly sent me plummeting to my death?"

His mother frowned as she seemed to be choosing her words before she spoke.

"Kaoru,...there was no car. You see, sweetheart, well, remember when you were really small, and you used to feel dizzy a lot?"

"N- no...not really."

"There was a problem with your heart when you were born."

"My heart?!" Hikaru stirred at Kaoru's raised voice.

"Well, not really your heart, it was the heart valves. It caused a murmur, irregularities in your heart beat," she continued on in an even quieter tone so as not to wake Hikaru further. Kaoru stared at her, wide eyed. "They told us everything was fine after they performed a small surgery to correct it, but there was always a slight chance it could reoccur."

Kaoru's mouth fell open. He couldn't believe he was hearing this for the first time.

"We would have told you," she continued on, her eyes beginning to mist. "But Hikaru begged us not too, and since everything seemed fine, we decided to honor his wish. He's done such a good job keeping an eye on you all these years, probably too good of a job. You were starting to go a little stir crazy, I think!" She laughed, but there was little merriness in her voice. "Kaoru, darling, if we'd only known, we never thought-"

"It's alright, Mom." Kaoru comforted her. "If I even did remember, distant memories of feeling "dizzy" from my childhood wouldn't have kept me from driving my entire life. This might as well have been the first time it ever happened," he chuckled dryly. "So, I am the weak one after all, eh?"

"I don't know about that," his mother rose and smiled at him. "I see a boy who just survived a night alone in the wilderness with a terrible injury, and is still the one to comfort his brother." She shrugged. "You seem pretty strong to me."

Embarrassed for a moment, Kaoru side stepped her comment. "Oh yeah, that reminds me, what happened to my dog?"

"Your what?" Yuzuha replied flatly.

"Dog, my dog. He stayed with me the entire night. Did anyone see him when you found me?"

"Oh...yes...Haruhi was telling me she and Hikaru saw your bracelet tied to the...thing. They followed the dog back to you, I think."

"Ah, so it worked after all! That dog saved my life! I would have frozen to death without him."

"Is that so?" His mother sighed. "I guess what you're telling me is that miserable looking creature will be taking up residence in our lovely house?"

"Mom!" Kaoru frowned.

"Alright, alright," she relented, closing the door with a wink. "I'll have the driver take him to the groomers today, and we'll hope for a miracle. You try to get some rest now; all your friends want to see you when they get home from school."

"Thanks, Mom."

The rest of the host club arrived late in the evening, completely surrounding Kaoru on all sides. Tamaki had many, many bouquets of flowers, to "transform the drab surroundings to a place more befitting of beautiful people", and proceeded to place them everywhere about the room. Hikaru rolled his eyes at this, but looked mildly interested in all of the sweets Honey brought. He took the pastry box from Kaoru and began eating them.

"Hey, Hika-chan, Those are for Kao-chan!" Honey protested.

"What?! He can't eat them anyway!" Hikaru said defensively over a mouthful of lemon tart. Honey brought his hands up to his face, his eyes watering melodramatically.

"I didn't know! I'm sorry, Kao-chan!" he sniffled. Mori patted him on the head. Kaoru just chuckled.

"I appreciate it anyway, Honey-senpai! It's good to see everyone."

"Good to see you alive!" Haruhi shot back. She ruffled his hair playfully. "Sure had us fooled for a moment! You really got the waterworks going around here!"

"I swear I will never buy another motorcycle ever again," Hikaru vowed, holding up is fist full of jelly bun most earnestly.

"And I...will never steal another one," Kaoru quickly added. "By the way...well..thanks. Thanks for everything. If it weren't for you guys, I probably wouldn't be alive right now.

"Well, I suppose my family's police force found all the places in Japan you weren't," Kyoya's tone of voice was rather wry. "Tying your bracelet to that dog was good thinking, though."

"Yeah, we might not have seen you all the way down there without Demon Dog," Haruhi nodded.

"Demon Dog!?" Kaoru lifted his eyebrows and then knit them with a frown. "What kind of a name is that?"

"Definitely one that fits!" Tamaki said, his face paling slightly as he remembered seeing the dog the previous day. "Poor, unfortunate beast looks like something out of a horror film!"

"Hm-hm!" Honey nodded eagerly. "I thought he would be the cutest thing ever, if he saved you and all, but jeez!"

"It is kind of hard to look at him," Hikaru glanced at Kaoru out of the corner of his eye. "Are you really keeping him?"

"Listen to you guys!!" Kaoru closed his eyes as he spoke in a half-serious, indignant way. "Just because something's not pretty and shiny on the outside, you're ready to just get rid of it?"

"Hmph!," Kyoya smirked, readjusting his glasses. "That sounds like something our good, commoner friend, Haruhi would say."

"I don't have a problem with Demon Dog." She shrugged. "And besides, guys, I'm sure he'll look a lot better once he gets a bath and a hair cut, right?

Later that night, after visiting hours were over, the host club was seeing Hikaru to the door of his home when the very dog in question came bounding out the front door, a big red ribbon tied around his neck and a tail wagging most happily.

"Oh, Haruhi…," Tamaki whispered, wide eyed. "I think this is the one time you're REALLY going to have to admit you were wrong." Haruhi just laughed at the ridiculous bow tied around the still pretty damn ugly, albeit cleaner, mutt of a dog.

"The name stays," Mori declared grimly. The dog barked, and everyone unanimously nodded.

***

Ok, think we've seen enough of the hospital scene for now. Next, in chapter five, we get on with it already! Woof!