Chapter Four
"It's a disaster. It's an incredible mess." - Ok Go!
It has been over two hours since she sat in the same spot, under the same tree, reading the same book, doing absolutely nothing. Well, depends if you consider reading doing something. Even though reading fell under the verb category, to Ren Ichihara it was nothing different then sitting by yourself and dazing off with your head stuck in the clouds – something she missed doing from time to time.
Ren was not always a studious bookworm with her mind set on academic achievements and education. In fact, books were never her "thing." She preferred watching zombie movies over her Geology homework any day. But that behavior changed almost immediately during the summer before her first year in middle school.
After hearing her parents converse about money being a serious issue now that her father lost his job, it would seem the only place her head would be stuck in was in a picture-less textbook. Booo . . .
Although she was never truly fond of novels, on this particular day, she was especially glad to have one in her possession.
Thanks to time management, Ren completed her homework for each of her classes. She did not feel like going home yet, mainly because her bubbly aunt would be there, so she began reading a book that was assigned by her teacher. Ren wasn't surprised to see a bookstore in Ouran Academy; seriously, they had everything else so why not a bookstore. However, what did surprise her was the insanely high book price. She practically threw her allowance out the window. But as Ren read more and more, she forgot all about the 150 dollars, and sighed with content.
She was thankful the story was decent enough to keep her interested in the plotline. Unlike other books, this one drew her to it. Without realizing, she found herself turning the pages and actually enjoying herself. It was amazing. There had never been an assigned book that had her reading its chapters so intently. She giggled.
"'There she always felt secure, as if no one could see her, although as a matter of fact she was exposed to the stare of everyone who passed along under the churchyard wall. Nevertheless, once under the shadow of the great looming church, among the graves, she felt immune from the world, reserved within the thick churchyard wall as in another country.'"
Below her black curtain of hair, her lips curved into a small smile. "What a wonderful place to spend your leisure time."
Ren imagined walking through a graveyard in the midst of night. Anything could happen. While she walked in a black Victorian dress with dark grey ruffles, the ground beneath her feet quivered. Decomposing hands broke free from loose dirt, and one by one the dead rose, filling the silence with low moans. She looked to the left, and the supernatural floated over their tombstones. Lost souls had come to join the living once again. Ren felt honored.
"Such paradise." She said with a sigh. "Such a pleasant-"
"What are you doing?"
Ren blinked. That didn't sound like my voice, she thought. She looked up and found two perfectly sculpted, bare chests glowering in front of her face. Ren did not know how to react as she stared with a gawking mouth.
A moment of silence rolled by as the three stared at one another. One of the Hitachiin twins raised an eyebrow. That simple expression yanked her back to reality. Blood squirted out of her nose spontaneously.
The twins laughed, giving each other high fives. Ren told them to stop laughing as she quickly scampered behind the closest tree to hide her embarrassed face.
"What are you two doing here?" That, and how did you find me? She was confident that they wouldn't bother to go looking for her. "I thought you guys couldn't leave the host club during events!" She cried from the other side of the tree.
Kaoru scratched his nose. "We got bored, so we decided to come look for you-"
"-to have some fun." Hikaru crossed his arms in front of his naked chest.
Ren groaned. "I'm not in the mood to deal with two creatures of the light. Be gone!" She shooed them away with a wave of her hand.
"No can do. Didn't Kyouya tell you it's mandatory to attend every Host Club event?" Kaoru crossed his arms, becoming a mirror image of his twin. "Today we're holding the Caribbean Paradise event. You should check it out."
Should, but won't. She allowed half of her face to peek out from behind the tree trunk. "Um, I'm not, so sure about that." The stammering was out of her control due to the beautiful view she had of the twins nicely chiseled, half naked bodies.
A long green Hawaiian skirt hugged their slim hips and thighs, falling down with a slit on the right side of their legs, exposing a rope-like ankle bracelet wrapped tightly around their calves. They didn't seem to be wearing anything else but the skirt. She swallowed, trying to dislodge the sudden lump in her throat.
Hikaru smirked to himself after realizing she was blushing from seeing their exposed chests. He wondered how she would react if she saw more of his skin. The thought was amusing.
"Why not?" Hikaru's mouth twisted into a half smile. He took a step closer, wanting her to erupt with another nosebleed. "After all, you are my client. But I should warn you, hyperventilation is sure to happen once you spend long, quality time with my brother and I."
That wasn't a problem, she was already hyperventilating. Hikaru had come far too close for her liking. She quickly hid behind the trunk again.
"Wait!" She shrieked. Hikaru stopped dead in his tracks. Ren inhaled a shaky breath, and pressed her cheek to the cold tree bark. "The reason why I won't go is because . . . I don't want to be in the same room with you!"
The twins were offended.
"Why?" They snapped.
"You're too bright." She admitted bluntly. "I may melt."
"That's impossible!" Shouted the brothers.
"It's difficult for dazzling creatures to comprehend what the hideous ones have to endure under their bright presence." Ren shook her head. "So I'm not surprised to hear this from you."
The brothers exchanged confused glances with one another. Kaoru shrugged his shoulders, signaling to Hikaru that he had no idea what she meant.
Hikaru jadedly closed his eyes and swung a hand behind his head, shaking his red hair. "Anyways," he began slowly. "How about we get started on the project?" He paused, and then muttered incoherently, "The sooner we finish, the better for me."
"The only place you'll be working on your project is inside the host club."
Ren shrieked when she saw Tamaki and the rest of the beautiful host members. They were wearing almost the same Hawaiian skirts as the twins, except with different colors and designs. The light radiating off of their naked chests brought Ren to her knees. Not even the tree was strong enough to block their brightness. She was doomed.
"Re-ni-chan!" Shouted Hani, waving happily at her with a wide smile.
"Oh, no!" She quickly hid her face behind the tree trunk and mumbled to herself, "having the natural ability to shine so brightly should be a crime."
"Why is that tree black and dead-looking?" Hani looked up at Mori while pointing at the tree Ren was behind. "I thought trees are suppose to be green and healthy-looking."
Mori shrugged. "I don't know."
Kaoru looked confused, while his brother glared at Tamaki. "How come only in the host club?" He asked.
Tamaki flashed a smile. "As King, I am fully responsible for every princesses well-being in my glorious palace."
The twins grimaced, clearly bothered by their lord's response. "It's not like we're going to molest her." Hikaru said dryly.
A gasp was heard behind Hikaru and Kaoru. They turned around.
"Y-you're telling me . . . I have to go to the host club, today - every other day - just to work on my project with the dazzling creature?"
Raising a suggestive finger in the air, Tamaki opened his mouth to answer Ren's question when suddenly Hani interrupted him.
"Nope! Today we're not going to be at the host club! We're going to the beach!" He cheered excitedly, running towards her with his arms wide open.
She flinched and quickly scurried to the other side of the tree to avoid Hani's hug attack. Hani smiled happily as he jogged around the tree after her, innocently thinking she was playing a game.
"It's going to be fun! We can eat ice cream all day, play beach volleyball. Oh! And go swimming in our cute swimsuits! You have a cute swimsuit, ne Reni-chan?"
To her discomfort, many pink flowers randomly popped around her short Senpai, and she was more than happy to see he had stopped following her around the tree.
"Huh? Beach?" She was a little lost. "Swimsuit?"
Ren did not make any plans to go to the beach, so why would she own a swimsuit?
Kaoru slowly leered over her right shoulder. "Yeah, the bright beach. Where the bright ocean is."
Ren tensed, not expecting anyone to sneak up behind her.
Then Hikaru leered over her left shoulder. "Where the bright creatures go to have fun in the sun. In their bright swimsuits. Wouldn't that be wonderful?" He blew cool air in her ear. The sudden feeling caused her to jump away from the Hitachiin twins.
"Bright beach!" She exclaimed.
Everything finally sunk in. They are planning on taking her with them to the beach. This meant spending time under a bright, cheerful, sun with equally bright and cheerful people. Not a pleasing combination. The only wonderful place for her was in a dark room, totally secluded from the world. After a long pause, she lunged forward to break into a sprint. "I just remembered I'm allergic to sand!"
The twins snatched each of her arms before she could dash away from them.
"Nice try!" They both held smug grins.
"Now that we have successfully captured our rebels," Tamaki gave a quick glance at Mori who carried an annoyed Haruhi on his shoulder. Smiling contently with himself for coming up with a painstakingly, thought-out plan about getting Haruhi and Ren to go along with them to the beach, Tamaki pointed to a random location. "We can finally venture off to prosperous paradise, gentlemen!"
"Yeah!" Victoriously shouted the host members, shooting one arm in the air.
Haruhi dropped her head and heaved a sigh. "Somehow I feel today is going to be a very troublesome day."
"NONONO! YOU WON'T TAKE ME ALIVE!" Screamed Ren.
Paradise. It was the perfect word to describe the scenery.
Thousands of miles away from civilization, on a small deserted island with its beaches covered in pale white sand, the Ouran Host Club spent their leisure time at the tropical Caribbean, along with their infatuated customers.
The warm sun hovered in the afternoon sky. The wind blew fresh salty air through the coast, tossing and swaying the tropical plants scattered on the green island.
Everyone was enjoying their little vacation away from home. The designators were incredibly thrilled to be at paradise with their princes. However, a certain transfer student was disinclined to join the others. In fact, she made sure of it.
"Come out already!"
"No!"
"You're overreacting, you know that?"
"I'm not listening!"
"Damn it, you're impossible!" Hikaru stormed away, grinding his teeth over each other.
Bringing her knees to her chest, Ren stared at the locked door in front of her with a bleak expression. It was quiet outside, with the exception of the roaring ocean and the squawking seagulls.
Alone once again, she assumed. Ren smiled as she observed her dim surroundings. As long as she stayed inside the private plane, and away from Hikaru and his beautiful friends, she was safe.
Suddenly, something ran into the side of the plane. Ren focused on the door, alarmed.
"You're getting out of that stupid plane even if I have to break down the stupid door!" Shouted Hikaru on the other side, and he ran into the door a second time, slightly shaking the aircraft. "Now come out!" He slammed into the door again and again.
"Why are you still here?" She shouted. "Go away!"
"Not until I prove to you that the sun isn't going to make you melt!" Hikaru ran his shoulder into the steal door. "It's all in that twisted head of yours!" He stopped using his shoulder, it was throbbing with undeniable pain, and started kicking the door wildly instead.
"If she doesn't want to come out, we can always create a second door with a chainsaw." Suggested Kaoru while watching Hikaru's impractical attempt to break open the steel entrance. "I think there's one in a shed nearby."
"I have a better idea!" Hikaru looked over his shoulder and grinned impishly. "Lets smoke her out."
"Are you really going to use fire as a final option?" Asked Haruhi, walking up to the two. "Don't you realize you can kill her?"
"You mean she isn't dead already?"
Kaoru elbowed his brother for saying such an immature remark -Hikaru rubbed his arm to soothe the tingling sensation - and asked, "Then what do you suggest we do? She refuses to come out."
"Have you tried being polite to her?" She suggested.
Hikaru made a face. "Why would I do that?"
Must I always do everything, Haruhi strode pass the perplexed twins, and stopped before the door. She was surprised to see Hikaru had made a dent. She knocked twice. "Hey, Ren. It's Haruhi. May I ask how long you are planning on staying in there?"
"Until we leave from this place!"
She nodded, understanding her. "Well, that isn't going to happen until three hours from now. Do you really want to stay cooped up in there for that long? Wouldn't you rather come out and at least try to enjoy the beach. Besides, Mori and Hani are cooking lobster for dinner and strawberry short-cake for desert." She closed her eyes to imagine the delectable seafood the two third years cooked the last time they were at the beach. "You should try their lobster. I can assure you it's very delicious."
Haruhi paused for a moment, waiting for a response.
Kaoru tilted his head to one side. "I don't see her coming out."
Haruhi mused with a hand over her mouth. "Hmm, I guess she isn't very fond of lobster then."
"Well that obviously didn't work. Lets try my plan."
"We aren't going to burn down the plane, Hikaru!" Glowered Haruhi. "Not only will you put Ren's life in danger, but you will also destroy the only transportation we have off of this island."
"Don't worry about it." Hikaru said. "I'm sure Kyouya can easily call one of his relatives to send us a second plane."
"That wasn't the point." She grumbled under her breath.
The plane's door slowly creaked opened behind Haruhi, quickly gaining the three host members attention from each other.
A mysterious, dark smog seeped out of the ajar door, trailing closer to the three. Haruhi cautiously took a couple of steps away from the strange smoke while Hikaru and Kaoru grabbed each other for their dear lives, teeth chattered uncontrollably.
Haruhi forced a smile when she got a glimpse of Ren's image behind the thick smog. "Ah, Ren. I'm glad you choose to-EEP!" she chocked on her words when sunlight shined over Ren from inside the dim aircraft.
Shrouded in a black cloak, with a pair of sunglasses and a mouth mask, Ren stepped out from the plane and into the light, breathing irregular.
"Well . . . I do like strawberries." Admitted Ren shyly.
Everyone stared at her, and after a moment of silence, the twins suddenly broke out into a fit of laughter.
Kaoru fell to his knees. "Out of all the bizarre outfits to wear at the beach, that tops everything!" He laughed, hammering the sand with his hand.
Haruhi closed her eyes and sighed. "Indeed, today is going to be a very troublesome day."
Those bangs . . . so long and . . . annoying.
His right brow twitched as he continued to stare at her unkempt bangs hanging in front of her face.
Isn't she bothered by them?
Ren turned the page to her General Biology textbook, and, somehow, he grew even more agitated by this simple movement. The way she was dressed was beyond ridiculous; by far the most strangest thing he had ever seen, and the worst part about it . . . he had to sit next to her, where the world could see. He would give anything just to be anywhere, but here with her.
Turning his head to the right, he found Hani, Kaoru and Tamaki squirting each other with water guns by the shoreline with a few of their clients.
They looked happy. They looked like they were having fun. He clenched his teeth together. God! He wished he was having fun, like normal people should be doing at the beach. Not doing a stupid class assignment.
This sucks. He ran his right hand over his face.
Ren turned the page again. She was so focused in her work that she was oblivious to a pair of golden eyes glaring at her as she copied important information from her textbook. By seeing this, Hikaru sighed and returned his attention to the notes that Ren lend him. He couldn't understand her chicken-scratch, and thought no one else could either. Now he regretted going to the Kawaii Brunch, but what choice did he have? This was all Tono's fault, he thought. If it weren't for his stupid events then I wouldn't be in this situation.
After a moment or two, an aggravated sigh passed through his lips, and he leaned back in his chair. Hikaru crossed his arms over his bare chest. There was no way he was going to read while everyone else was having fun. It was not fair, but most important, not fair for him. They were not the ones stuck studying with a ghost for a lab partner. No. They were the lucky ones. He envied them.
Not moving his head, Hikaru glanced up at Ren across his way. She was still jotting down DNA notes from her book. Boring. He tilted his head back, mouth closing with disillusionment as he balanced a chewed up pencil on his nose. Suddenly, an idea abruptly crossed his mind. A not-so boring idea. The corners of his mouth curved into a sly grin.
If he was going to be stuck with a strange bookworm instead of enjoying the beach with his friends, then she had to entertain him one way or the other. And he knew exactly how.
"You know what I just realized?"
Ren looked up from her textbook. The way he said those last words made her wary. His voice was too suspicious to go unnoticed.
Hikaru could not hide the smirk playing on the corners of his lips anymore as he continued, "Yesterday, you took one look at my face and screamed, I think its only fair for me to see yours."
Dropping the pencil in her hand, she quickly pressed her back against the back supporter of her chair. "W-w-what do you mean?"
"I m-m-mean," he mocked. "You should chop off those bangs so I can see that face of yours. Lets see how ugly you say you truly are."
"Anything but that!"
Hikaru threw himself across the table but was not fast enough to catch Ren. She jumped from her chair, and sprinted across the field of white sand. He grinned, pushing himself off from the table, and chased after her with rapid speed.
So his plan was not as effective as he first thought it would be. However, now he had something exciting to do. Better this than being bored, he considered.
Pumping his ultra water gun anxiously, he kept his eyes on Tamaki-who was also trying to increase the pressure in his super hydro water gun. Kaoru grinned.
One of them was going to get smacked with a strong force of water.
"You're going down!" Tamaki began to pump his water gun faster then the Hitachiin twin. "There's no way I'm going to let you spend the rest of the afternoon with Haruhi. She's safer with her father!"
"You won't have to worry! After our long walk on the beach, Haruhi will be saying, Tamaki who?" Laughed Kaoru.
Tamaki immediately aimed his water gun at him. "You'll regret thinking about that!"
"Duck, Tono!"
"Duck?" Tamaki looked lost.
He did not have the chance to turn round and see who had shouted when something soft and solid suddenly bumped into him. With a short yelp, Tamaki was instantly pushed aside by an unknown force. The force was amazingly strong to make him fly twenty feet in the air and over Kaoru's head; who watched with his mouth slightly open in awe.
"Dammit! Where'd she go?" Grumbled Hikaru as he looked in all directions, oblivious to the pairs of curious eyes glued to him.
"What are you up to this time, Hikaru?" Asked his identical twin with hands on his hips.
He turned around and smirked arrogantly. "I'm gonna unmask Creepy-chan."
A/N: The book Ren obsesses over in this chapter is a classic short story written by D.H Lawrence, "The Horse Dealers Daughter."
Thank you guys for reviewing! Keep it up. I want to know if you like my story or not. It's always motivational to read your responses :)
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I absolutely love my Strawberry Flavor. It's coming out so well. The picture I used for the book cover was created by ME! Isn't it lovely? I don't mind if you guys create any form of art in tribute to my fanfic. I want to thank TwilightMoon416 and CouplePrincess for their wonderfully mastered videos. I recommend everyone to go watch them. They can be found on my homepage! :D