It was now day one of Haruhi's absence. I over looked the chaos as usual, feeling no remorse for the girls who asked me about Haruhi's wear-abouts. Instead, it just made me annoyed. These girls seemed to only be thinking about them-selves. Did they not notice that we were all extra busy due to her leave? We had to try and get the twins to do the odd jobs, and they were awful at it.
"You only need one table spoon!" Kaoru yelled at his brother, shoving him to the side. They were behind one of the tables, surrounded by hot water and tea-cups. Hikaru was desperately flailing his arms, a container of Instant Coffee clenched in his fingers.
"It says right here you need a cup!" HIkaru fought back, shoving his finger to the container before pushing it towards his brother's face.
"That's for a pot, you dolt!" Kaoru informed him, chucking the table spoon at Hikaru's chest.
"Hey!" Hikaru proceeded to pick up the cup measurement, throwing it at Kaoru's shoulder. Kaoru's eyes began to water and he desperately clenched at the point of impact. "Kaoru!" Hikaru shouted, reaching desperately for him. The younger twin pulled away, clenching his teeth.
"You're so mean, Hikaru!" he cried softly, his lips quivering.
"I'm sorry," Hikaru began, reaching for his brother. He tugged down his blazer a bit, as well as undoing a few buttons from the shirt underneath. Both articles fell from his shoulders and down his arms. Hikaru planted a small peck where he had thrown the cup. As he did, the tears Kaoru had been harbouring rolled down his cheeks.
"H-Hikaru..."
As the girls began to squeal, I turned away. I couldn't help but roll my eyes at the show. I was used to it happening, but not when they were supposed to be making coffee for our guests. It was annoying and inconvenient. I turned to the King, hoping he was doing better, but he wasn't on any of the couches. After looking around a bit more – making sure not to put in too much effort- I found him hauled up in the corner of the room, surrounded by a dark cloud of his own depression. I tried to ignore it as yet another girl tapped on my shoulders.
"Uh, K-Kyouya-kun?"
I spun to look at her, giving her face much consideration. Mayumi Nime, daughter of Tekeru Nime, the President of Nime Sporting-Goods chain. 17 years old, five foot seven and a half, class 2-B, blood type AB positive, born in June of 92. I leaned down graciously and extended a hand.
"What can I do for you, miss?" I asked gently. She still seemed a bit nervous, avoiding my gaze, but she quickly regained herself.
"I was just wondering where Haruhi-kun was today!" she managed to squeak. My eye twitched a bit with frustration before I straightened my back again. My smile faded into one of complete professionalism.
"Haruhi has had some trouble with his grades and needs to take a leave to ensure his number one spot on the next exam." I turned away, starting to write in my notebook again. Mayumi Nime... Favours Haruhi.
"O-Oh... That's too bad," she muttered quietly, turning to look at the door. It was obvious she had no desire to stay, but was missing the ability to leave. Normally I would encourage her to request Tamaki for the day, but since he was currently MIA, I stayed silent. She muttered a bit more, but I ignored it. Eventually, she simply walked away.
My stress was going through the roof. I attempted to push up my glasses, but I found it not even worth it. I tried to keep my eyes on my notebook as they slipped further and further down my nose. As girls began to leave, I finally took them off entirely and found myself a couch, sitting down and putting them on the coffee table in front.
I rubbed my hands together for a bit before forcefully tugging at the skin on my face. Unbeknownst to me and my current lack of vision, Honey-senpai was sitting across from me, kicking his legs back and forth while he hugged tightly against his stuffed bunny.
"You look upset, Kyou-chan," he commented, lifting his legs and hugging against them. I was surprised he wasn't with Mori, stuffing his face full with cake, but I didn't really care. I slipped my glasses back on and looked over to him. He had a curious look in his eyes, but at the same time, they looked mature and all-knowing, much like Honey always did. If you gave him a considerable glance, that is.
"I'm alright," I replied, a bit bitter. I really wasn't in the mood for any conversation right now. I kept my eyes on him as his smile brightened a bit. "Haruhi being gone is just a lot of stress. She definitely keeps things running smoothly."
Honey nodded in the direction of the room's corner with an agreeing grunt. Tamaki was still there, clouded more than ever as the twins appeared to be taunting him from either side. "Tama-chan has been there all day!"
For some reason, seeing the King so worked up was actually making my anger worsen. We were already missing one host; we didn't need to lose two. He suddenly burst up and began screaming something at the twins, who just snickered and ran off next to each other, Tamaki close behind waving two fists.
"He really misses her," Honey added timidly. His eyes were a bit screwed and there was a respectful smile across his lips. It took me off guard. It was rare for him to act his age. "And I think you do, too." The threesome behind us raced by again, creating a cloud of dust. Mori was unenthusiastically walking behind them with a blank stare.
"What?"
The comment was surprising. I looked him over, looking for any sort of continuation of the suggestion, but he stayed silent and still. I finally turned downwards and glared at my knees a bit. I miss her? Well, of course I do. She does a lot of work around here that couldn't be done by anyone else. I miss that bit of calm during the storm she brings when she speaks to me. It keeps me mellow. I miss her rational thinking; her ability to coach everything by just treating everyone like children. She kept me relaxed, and my work stayed at the top of my game because of it.
The group raced by again, completely surpassing Mori's futile attempt to get involved. He spun on his heel and began walking in the direction he came, still following behind the three.
"I guess I do," I muttered quietly, my eyes shifting to stare at the floor. These need to be waxed, I thought to myself, my mouth falling into a stressful pout. Honey let out an audible nod from his couch, his eyes still bright.
"And I think the longer you pretend you don't, the worse it's going to get," he added. He jumped to his feet and made his way to the other side of the table, jumping up next to me. I lifted my head to turn to him. He was hugging his bunny against his face, his eyes closed. "It may be hard for Kyou-chan to notice, but if you erased the club from your mind, you would still miss her."
I took time to consider his words. Was he really right? Erase the club... I couldn't help but take time to imagine her in front of me; her sincere smile, her timid confidence, the way she was always happy, even when she was pissed off. My personal feelings...
"You don't miss her because she makes you feel up for working," he started, opening his eyes. They pierced through mine right as the realization was coming to me. My eyes widened a bit as it poured into my mind, my back slowly straightening.
"You miss her because she makes you feel up."
