A/N: Hello everyone! Again!
So, I'm writing to you now from Tokyo~ yay! I moved here a few months ago, and started a new job. It's been quite difficult adjusting to a new city and working life, so apologies for the delayed update. But…have no fear! I have been trying to work as diligently as I can on this project. ヽ(；▽；)ノ
Anyways, just to let you know, from here on out there will be several flashback episodes worked into the majority of the chapters. Some of them are continuous, some are not. I think they are pretty self-explanatory, but please message me if there is anything confusing. I am still stretching out my writer's legs, after all (and quotations are STILL difficult. Argh!).
Thanks to all of you who wrote such awesome reviews and PMs! I apologize for being so late in replying to them all. I'm going to try and start replying to messages as I get them, so please keep writing with your thoughts and opinions. They really help me form my own ideas for the story.
And on to…chapter three!
##
Chapter Three: Of Bento Lunches and Strawberry Drinks
##
The hospital room was quiet, apart from a rhythmic beeping next to the single bed. Though it was daylight, only several sunbeams managed to struggle through the heavy curtains lining the windows. Several mild paintings of flowers and such dotted walls painted various shades of white and beige – nondescript, and meant to be calming. A large machine monitoring the patient's heartbeat loomed over the bed, directly in the middle of the room.
In the center of the bed lay a solitary form, pristine white sheets carefully tucked in around the petite body. The patient was a young woman, around high school age. Her skinny, pale white arms rested on top of a mound of blankets. Long brown hair covered her pillow and tickled the collar of her bubblegum pink hospital gown. Though it was around lunchtime, her eyes were shut, and her breathing was steady and slow. Wires wound their way from underneath her clothes to the machine squatting next to her. It was her heartbeat breaking the stillness of the room.
The only other form in the room was a man, in the lone chair placed next to the bed for guests. Posture straight, the man sat opposite the heart monitor, staring with one dark brown eye down at a folder of paper. Midnight black hair fell over his other eye, and his lips were set into a grim frown. Dressed in muted tones of black and gray, he painted a solemn picture. He didn't move apart from his gaze steadily pacing back and forth across the stack of paper in his hands.
Everything was quiet.
Except…
"Nn."
A sound.
The man in the chair lifted his head to look sharply towards the bed.
No movement.
Then, "Nn…"
Several long brown locks of hair fell from the girl's shoulders.
The heartbeat monitor's pulse began beating faster than before. The man's eyes widened, and flicked to the lit screen. He unfolded himself from the chair, tall frame towering over the bed as he peered at the monitor. When he leaned over the girl, she seemed even smaller than before. The man cocked his head to one side, listening intently.
"Nnn…"
This time, the sound was unmistakable. Halfway between a sigh and a groan, the girl shifted her head ever so slightly to the right. Her eyelashes fluttered against pale cheeks. One hand clenched her fuzzy hospital blanket.
The man straightened and stood there quietly for a moment, watching the girl. Though his movements were calmly slow, his eyebrows were furrowed in intense concentration. As the girl slowly turned her head the other way, towards the man, he froze in place, not daring to breathe.
Slowly, slowly. Slowly. The girl's eyes slid open.
The man watched, perfectly still, as the girl blinked. She had light brown eyes to match her hair, large against her thin face and pupils filled with a vague fog. As the haze in her eyes gradually disintegrated, she opened her mouth. The man's shoulders went rigid.
The girl's coughed. Her voice was rough, littered with debris from lack of use.
"Where am I?"
The man expression was unreadable, as the girl struggled to focus her eyes on his face. He paused a second before responding.
"You're at a hospital. You…survived an accident."
"Oh." Another pause, "I did?"
"Yes." The man watched the girl gingerly stretch her neck to peer around her. She noticed the wires taped to her chest, and connected to the machine. Her eyes widened. Before she could point them out though, the man asked, "What do you…remember?"
The girl frowned at the question, "What do I…?" She coughed again, and continued coughing.
Realizing the girl's discomfort, the man swiftly strode over to a table near the door. He filled a paper cup with water from a pitcher set there. Handing this cup to the girl, he helped ease her head back to drink a few sips. Her grip was weak, and she could not guide the cup to her lips on her own.
As the man went to fill the cup again, the girl lifted several thin fingers, and pressed them to her forehead. She closed her eyes, breathing.
When she spoke once more, her voice was a little smoother, but still as soft as a wisp of wind, "What…do I…remember…" Her fingers pressed harder into her forehead, "I don't…"
She could not finish her sentences. The man returned with another cup of water, and the girl looked up at him. Her eyes were the eyes of someone lost.
The man was not lost, however. His height forced him to tilt his head down to observe the girl, and she shifted backwards, her spine pressed against her pillow that wasn't stuffed quite enough to be comfortable. He tucked one hand into the pocket of his tailored pants the color of storm clouds.
He asked another question, "Do you know who I am?"
She frowned at him, not understanding why he wasn't explaining the situation to her, "My…doctor…san?"
The man's one visible eye suddenly shifted from chocolate to something muddier, murkier. Sadder. Filled with oceans of something so indescribable that the girl shied further away from him. She unconsciously held her paper cup up to her chest, for protection.
The man then asked, even quieter, "Do you know who you are?"
"I…" The girl jerked her head back.
The man watched as the girl's fingers curled around her paper cup. Though her grip was frail, it now created small indents. Creases. Stress lines that deepened as the girl began to curl in on herself. The heartbeat monitor beeped faster, faster, faster.
Her voice came out in a squeak, "I…!"
The whites of her eyes laced with panic, the girl looked up at the man.
"I don't…!" She burst out, "I don't know!"
The force of her reply caused the man to take a step back. His eye widened just for a fraction of a second, and his gaze darted to the stack of paper on the chair. But, just as quickly, he returned to his formal posture. He nodded, mouth set in a thin line.
"I see. Memory loss…as I suspected."
The girl's breathing hitched, "I…what?" She trembled as she looked up at him, voice choked, as if a lake were filling up in her throat, "My memory? I d-don't understand…who am I?"
Seeing the girl's body start to shake, the man bent down quickly so that they were eye-to-eye. Though his image was severe, his voice was soft. Reaching the girl through her erratic breathing.
"It's okay. It will be okay. You will be alright."
He forced her eyes to meet his, and she looked at him. Really looked at him. She could see a smile behind his eye, even if it was not on his face. Her shoulders slowly lowered from their hunched position.
"I…will?"
A real smile was on the man's face this time, "Yes, you will. You are still you, after all."
The girl's grip on her crushed paper cup loosened, just a smidge. She sniffled.
"Then…who am I?"
Again, the man glanced at the stack of paper. When he turned back to the girl, he was still smiling, but his eye was frozen.
"Sohma Kana," he said, "your name, is Kana. And you are my niece."
##
Sohma Kana frowned and tilted her head, "So X would be…six?"
"Right! See, you got it."
"Ah! It makes sense now! Haruhi-san, you're so amazing!"
The scholarship student in question laughed and took a bite of her sandwich, "No, I'm not the one doing all the work. You're very dedicated, Kana."
There was a peacefully pleasant atmosphere in the 2A classroom, and Fujioka Haruhi was spending her lunch break at Ouran High School enjoying the rare company of another person.
Not that this was the first time she had ever spent her lunch break with another person, mind you. The Host Club managed to drag her to the cafeteria on numerous occasions to join them in whatever antics they got up to that day. And recently, ever since the resident "commoner" began dating the King of the Host Club, her struggle to have her time between classes to look over today's notes, and to not have to constantly decline Tamaki's offers to buy her a "real" lunch (despite Haruhi's temptations for the gourmet dishes the Ouran cafeteria usually serves, she really hated owing people for something she could easily fix up herself the night before), had been getting harder than ever.
However, unlike all of those times spent eating with Tamaki and the rest of the Host Club, times that usually left Haruhi with a headache and mild indigestion…sitting with Sohma Kana, the newest 2A transfer, and socializing over a homemade lunch had been decidedly…pleasant.
The commoner glanced over at her new friend. Kana was humming to herself as she worked on the next math problem.
Though this was only their first lunch eating together, already Haruhi learned that while the new girl remained silent during class, and still stammered when the teacher called on her for answers, she was able to relax around her new scholarship student friend. So far, in the past half hour that they had spent eating, chatting, and going over the day's math lesson, Kana had smiled more times than Haruhi could remember her ever smiling in the three days since she entered Ouran. As it turned out, the Sohma girl had a naturally bubbly nature.
The fact that she had been so serious during lectures really showed how stressed she must have been this first week. Haruhi felt like she could sympathize – the academics at Ouran were quite rigorous, despite the frivolous natures of its students. Must be because the majority of students at this school were destined to take over their parents' respective companies. Education was important when it came to running the world.
The two girls sat at their desks in their empty classroom during this lunch break, notebooks and lunches in front of them. Haruhi usually spent her break time here alone. Though education was important at Ouran, so were the incredibly expensive gourmet lunches apparently. Most students went to the cafeteria to purchase food for the day.
However, Haruhi noted that Kana's bento box was a cheerful pink, and packed with homemade goodies such as the bright green steamed broccoli flower she just popped into her mouth. Kana nodded to herself as she chewed, scribbling a number down on her worksheet. A warm tingling filled Haruhi. Finally, someone else who understood the beauty and deliciousness of a simple bento!
Before Haruhi could revel further at this newfound kindred spirit, Kana broke into her thoughts.
"Haruhi-san, is this right?" Kana bit her lip, sliding her worksheet over to show the scholarship student, "I'm not sure if I did the equation right…"
Haruhi peered at Kana's tiny handwriting, examining the numbers, "No, this is correct. Nice job."
"It is? Ehehe~ wow!" Kana took her worksheet back, and looked at it, surprised at her own success. When she turned back at Haruhi, her cheeks were flushed, and her eyes flashed a warm honey color, "Thank you Haruhi-san! You're a really good teacher."
Haruhi chuckled, and sheepishly scratched the back of her head. "Aha, no, I just study a lot. It's probably the only thing I'm really good at."
"Oh, no, that can't be true!" Haruhi sat back at Kana's outburst, as the other girl scooted forward in her chair eagerly, "Haruhi-san, you're really good at talking to people! You always know exactly what to say to help me understand. I think that's why you must be so popular at the Host Club, even if you are a girl."
"Maa, I guess so…"
Haruhi had managed to summarize, very briefly, her first year at Ouran to Kana. Though the Sohma girl had not been able to grasp why Haruhi believed gender was not that important, or understand why the pretty (according to Kana) Haruhi had been dressed in a unisex sweater, instead of a nice skirt, in the first place, she liked the idea of Haruhi being popular with the Host Club despite not being a male host. Haruhi thought that that conclusion would have to be sufficient enough, and had left it at that.
And when Kana started complimenting her so easily, Haruhi thought she must have been hearing Kana's words from the bottom of her heart. It briefly occurred to the scholarship student that she had never met anyone so wholeheartedly genuine, as the bright-eyed Sohma girl.
Not knowing how to respond, Haruhi could only dip her head and smile slightly, "Thanks. You're…pretty good at talking to people yourself Kana."
"Me?" Kana's mouth fell open in surprise, "Oh, no, I'm definitely not!" She giggled to herself, "You are the first friend I can remember, after all. I don't think I had many friends before! At least, Hatori-san has never mentioned them, ehehe~"
Though Kana was laughing, her words made Haruhi pause. A hesitant, curious feeling worked its way into Haruhi's chest. It was the same sort of feeling that Haruhi had when Kana briefly mentioned her memory, yesterday in the library.
Haruhi looked down at her own bento, debating whether to approach the subject. There weren't enough leftovers from last night's dinner to make a bento for both her and Dad, so she had hastily thrown some ham and lettuce in-between slices of white bread and crammed them into her bento box for today. Haruhi fiddled with the last of her sandwich wedges.
"Kana, do you not..." Wait, Haruhi shook her head. That wasn't right. She tried again, "Kana, where were you…before Ouran?"
Kana blinked at Haruhi, chopsticks full of pork katsu halfway towards her mouth.
"Before…?" The sunny transfer student tilted her head to the side and popped her katsu into her mouth, "Ano…I was at a hospital before Hatori-san transferred me here."
Haruhi pondered this. "Were you…sick?"
"Mmm…I don't think so…" Kana frowned, trying to remember, "Hatori-san said I was in an accident. But…I wasn't physically hurt. I just slept for a long time. Then, when I woke up, he was there to greet me."
"Is Hatori-san your doctor?"
"No, my uncle!" Kana smiled at the memory, "But I thought so, when I first woke up. I didn't know where I was, or how I had gotten there. I didn't even know my own name!"
"Ah," Haruhi's mouth dropped open slightly, "that's…amnesia?"
"That's it! That's what Hatori-san said." Kana laughed, "He said my accident must have been very painful because I couldn't remember a single thing about my life before I woke up!" She popped another mouthful of pork katsu into her mouth, and smiled at Haruhi through full cheeks.
Huh.
Haruhi looked at Kana, the Sohma girl's smile as cheery as her yellow uniform.
Could she be that happy again, if she woke up with no memory of who she was? Of the Host Club, who had become her support at Ouran? Of her father, who loved her more than anything in the world? Of her mother, who was her strength when she felt she could not reach her goals?
The scholarship student's voice was soft. Wanting to know more about her new classmate, curious about her ability to laugh, but afraid of what she might uncover, "Weren't you scared? …When you woke up?"
Kana looked at Haruhi, contemplating her new friend's question. Then she turned towards the whiteboard for a minute, Her voice was subdued when she finally responded, but it was not hesitant like Haruhi's. And she was still smiling.
"I was terrified. When I woke up, and first realized I did not even know my own name…I thought there must have been some mistake. That maybe I was having a nightmare. I wanted to cry. All I could think was 'why?'. 'Why did this happen to me?'"
"But, Hatori-san told me that it would be okay. Because I am still me. I cannot be anything else."
Kana looked up from her pink bento to stare at Haruhi. Haruhi saw her own bewildered expressed mirrored in Kana's eyes.
Slowly, Kana's lips curved upwards again. A gentle smile.
" And, I didn't cry that day. So I thought…maybe he was right."
A pause.
"Besides! It is a little exciting, isn't it, to learn about yourself again? Each day I learn something new about myself!" The Sohma girl grinned, the somber atmosphere from before completely shattered, "For instance, today I learned that I really hate carrots…even though I prepared them last night thinking that I would definitely like them." Kana scrunched up her face, and pointed at her bento.
When Haruhi looked down, in a daze, to where Kana was pointing, she realized that the other girl was telling the truth. Kana had finished everything in her bento except for the small pile of carrots, tucked neatly against one of the curved edges of the container.
"I…see," Haruhi managed to get out, after staring at the carrots for another couple of seconds, "I suppose, when you look at it like that…"
Kana nodded vigorously, "I do! After all, I don't know if my past self liked carrots or not, but I do know that my current self doesn't seem to like them much. I think that's very good to know about myself, don't you?"
The scholarship student stared at Kana. The idea of being excited to learn you severely dislike carrots was so preposterous that really, what could you do?
So Haruhi laughed.
"Yes, that would be quite important to know, I think."
Glancing at Kana, this girl who was still humming and smiling despite her circumstances, Haruhi definitely felt that her strength was admirable.
Perhaps she could convince Kana to join her at the Host Club one afternoon, to keep her sane there as well. Rumors had it that Tamaki was planning another themed day for next week, and Haruhi could already sense that she would need all the strength she could get to survive this year.
##
"She woke up?"
"Yes. Just a little while ago."
"Ah~ and I wanted to be there when my little flower opened her eyes~!"
"Don't be an idiot. Is her room set up?"
"Yes! The movers just came with her bed. I bought a really fluffy and cute one, just as my little princess deserves~"
"Shigure."
"Mou~ don't give me that face, Haa-kuuun. You make me feel inappropriate somehow~"
"…"
"Maa, it's all set up, in any case! …How is she?"
"Physically, she's fine. A little weak, but she should be okay to move in a couple of days."
"Wonderful! …And? Her memory?"
"As I had thought…something went wrong…"
"So that means…?"
"…It's gone. Completely."
"…I see. She resisted too much, ne? Our little flower is much stronger than we expected!"
"Shigure-"
"-And? What did you tell her? When she woke up?"
"…Just what you prepared on those documents. 'That' name."
"Ah, 'that' name? Good! This shall be fun then, won't it, Haa-kun?"
"…This isn't something to joke about."
"Boo~ have a sense of humor. I thought it ironically appropriate. Well, once you deem her ready, we can move her in to her new place. Help her adjust to it, and her new name."
"Hn."
"Oh! And there appears to be a school within walking distance from the apartment. It looks like a prestigious academy…could be a good place for her during the day. We can't stay by her side all the time…not with Akito."
"Is that really necessary? Giving her a whole new life…she's not-"
"-We cannot take her to her grandfather's. There's too much at risk."
"…"
"The curse is breaking, Hatori. I can feel it."
"Tohru…"
"…Will be fine. If my suspicions are correct, she has been a catalyst in many ways, after all."
"…Is that all you view her as? A catalyst?"
"Of course not! Don't be cruel, Haa-kun. Our little Tohru is a precious gem to me, treasured above all my worldly possessions."
"Shigure…"
"…We just have to wait, a little longer. This is larger than you, or me. And Tohru is strong. You know that, right?"
"…"
"For now, we shall call her Kana! It will be an interesting experiment, you'll see. You won't mind withdrawing her from Kaibara, will you, Haa-kun? I will look into transferring her elsewhere."
"…"
"…It's for the best, Hatori. For everyone…including Tohru."
"…Fine."
##
Momiji frowned. Something was not right.
Standing in front of the school's lone vending machine, Momiji dug into his pockets again. A note from Sato-kun. A paperclip. A small eraser in the shape of whale. A ball of lint.
No coins.
There was a new strawberry drink item in the machine that Momiji had only noticed yesterday. He had been determined to come today during lunch to try it out! But without a coin…Mojiji pouted, and looked around at the ground, wondering if he had happened to drop his change somewhere.
"Mou~ I thought I had one…"
"Don't worry, I got this."
Momiji looked up from searching the cement below, just as an arm reached across his vision and plunked a coin into the machine. The blonde bunny looked to his left – to see the student council vice president, Manabe Kakeru grinning back at him. Manabe winked, and held two fingers up in a victory sign.
"The strawberry one right?"
"Ah, yeah…" Momiji frowned, staring at Manabe. He hadn't seen the third year at all this week – not since the first day of school.
"Well? Aren't you gonna get your drink?" Manabe reached out again, and pressed a button. After a faint whirring, he stuck his hand into the machine, pulled out a can, and tossed it towards Momij, "Here!"
Momiji's caught the can, eyes wide, "Th-Thanks."
Manabe inserted another coin, and selected a drink for himself, "No problem. I tried it yesterday already – it's pretty good." He snapped his can open and took a large swig.
Momiji's first instinct was to hurry back to the classroom, and back to Haru before he said anything out of line again. Haru always knew what to say in situations like this, with people from the outside. Ordinarily Momiji would be fine as well, but circumstances had changed so quickly these days that the young half-German felt out of sorts.
Besides, the Sohma family secrets weren't his to accidentally share anymore. He was just like Manabe…an outsider.
So Momiji took a breath, and smiled brightly at the older boy, holding up his drink, "Jaa, can't wait to try it! Thanks again, Manabe-senpai~ I should get go-"
"-Can I ask a question?"
"-ing." Momiji's heart skipped a beat.
Manabe faced Momiji completely. He held his drink with one hand, and scratched at his wild head of black hair with the other, a lighthearted expression on his face. Momiji wondered what the consequences would be if he simply shot off towards his classroom without saying anything.
Probably not a good idea.
Instead, Momiji cocked his head to one side, and widened his eyes, "Um. Yes?"
The vice president's voice was light, "You said that Yun-Yun transferred, right?"
"Yup~ That's right!"
Manabe folded his arms, and nodded, "Right. It's funny, cuz I overheard these two other girls in the hallway the other day. I think they're Honda-san's friends. One was named…Hanajima? They were also talking about Yun-Yun. Something about study abroad."
Momiji's smile froze in place. He tried laughing, "Aha, yes~ something like that ne."
"Sohma Kyo too, right? Your cousin?"
"Yes, that's right!"
"And Honda-san too."
"Uh-huh~"
"But Honda-san is not part of the Sohma family," Manabe looked out into the courtyard, shielding his eyes from the sun with his free hand, "and you said that the head of your family was the one who sent them away."
"Aha, well, that-"
"-Something doesn't add up, ne!" Manabe leaned in close to Momiji, his eyes and white grin crinkling into a cat's smile.
Momiji's hand clenched around his strawberry drink. The vice president shouldn't be prying. Those who got too close to the Sohma family only ended up hurt.
A flash of long brown hair, and a snatch of white sundress, ran through Momiji's mind. He heard happy laughter, distant and echoing in his ears. Something clicked.
Tohru.
He could not let that happen again.
The blonde bunny backed away suddenly from Manabe, and spun around towards the classroom hallways. He took a few steps in that direction, before turning to look back at Manabe. Momiji gave him a grin just as white as the one the vice president gave him moments ago.
"Manabe-senpai is a surprisingly suspicious person, ne," he sang, "all over a small trip!"
Manabe blinked, "That's-!"
"It's family business, Manabe-senpai. Something you don't need to concern yourself with, ne?" Momiji tapped his cheek and smiled wide, "But good luck with the student council! Jaa~" He turned and walked away, not giving Manabe a chance to respond.
Tohru.
As Momiji opened the door into the school building, he heard Manabe's voice, ringing against the concrete walls of the school.
"What about Machi then, huh?" Manabe's voice was loud and demanding, "What do I tell her? She's also asking, you know."
Momiji stopped. He knew he shouldn't have, but he stopped anyways. He stood there in the doorway, not daring to turn his head. But, encouraged, the vice president continued.
"Machi…hasn't been herself. We've had to clean up the student council room at least five times already this week. I don't…I don't know how to fix it. So…"
Tohru.
Momiji finally looked back at Manabe one last time.
"She'll be okay, Manabe-senpai. You're there with her."
She doesn't have to study abroad.
Momiji left it at that. He hurried through the door, and back to his classroom, not stopping to say hello or chat with anyone in the hallways. His heart was beating wildly. Once inside the room, he took a large breath, and exhaled slowly.
"Momiji?"
Haru.
Momiji pasted a smile onto his face, and skipped over to his desk. Haru was seated at his own desk, next to Momiji's. He had both arms stretch out over the back of his seat, and he was chewing a straw lazily. When the blonde bunny ran up to him, Haru turned to look his way.
"Something wrong?" Haru frowned, "You look worried."
Momiji feigned surprise, patting his cheeks, "Ah, I do? I just ran back from the courtyard!"
"I see." Haru went back to staring out into the classroom, and continued chewing his straw.
Momiji sat down, and set his canned drink on his desk, staring at it. The sound of Manabe's coin dropping into the vending machine rang in his ears.
"Ne, Haru?"
"Nn."
"I…ran into Manabe-senpai. At the vending machine."
"Ah…"
Momiji turned to Haru, clutching his drink. His eyebrows were set in a worried furrow, "He's very curious, Haru. He kept asking questions."
Haru glanced at Momiji, but didn't move from his position. "Did you answer them?"
"No!" Momiji frowned, "Well, not really. But Haru…what should we do? He's smart…he is the vice president, after all.
Haru was silent. Momiji looked down at his drink, shoulders dropping.
He said, quietly, "Haru…Manabe-senpai is worried. About Machi. She's…she's not doing well."
"Does that have to do with us?"
"I think…I think she must have liked Yuki. Somehow…"
Tohru.
The two Sohma cousins sat in silence for a few minutes. Students began filing back into the classroom, to get ready for the last half of the day. Momiji stuffed his drink into his bag, unopened. He pulled out his notebook in a daze.
"Maybe," Haru said, as the teacher walked in for their next period, "We should talk to Sensei about this."
##
A/N: Whew! What a somber chapter!
I will be really glad when the rest of the Host Club gets thrown in, to shed some light in this story. At least Haruhi had been there, to ground things. And Momiji is trying is best!
Perhaps I will never be able to be a comical writer? I suppose I should stick to my writing strengths. Maa~ that is sad since I do so love a good humorous piece. (⊙﹏⊙✿)
I hope you guys enjoyed this installment. I'm proud to say that I have managed to draft a somewhat concrete outline for this story, to give me some direction. BUT I have been known to veer drastically off path on numerous occasions so… Please let me know what you think! I could use some help and inspiration. (●´∀｀●)