A/N: EDITED - 6/20/17

Chapter 7, yay! I had a little writer's block on how to exactly put this into words and then the chapter ended up being different from what I originally planned. BUT I still think it turned out great. Thanks for reading this far and I want to thank you wonderful people who have reviewed, followed and favorited. You guys are the best! I hope you like this.


Chapter 7: Beach Fun!

Blaise was more than happy when she woke up that Saturday morning. It was the weekend and she finally had some free time from school, the host club, and best of all, the Hitachiin brothers. Mostly one in particular.

Today would be a good day. Her dad was at work, so she had the house to herself. She wasn't planning on doing much, mostly chores and things like that, but it would be relaxing compared to her normal, day-to-day life.

After sitting up in bed and stretching in contentment, Blaise got up, performed her morning routine, and went downstairs to eat breakfast. She didn't feel like cooking, so she just warmed up leftovers and ate those. It took her a while to eat though; she was still trying to get used to chopsticks. She stared out the window as she ate, smiling slightly at the pale blue sky. It was early, but it looked like it would be a nice day. As Blaise washed her dishes, she decided to go out for a jog.

The girl went back upstairs to her room to get dressed, putting her hair into a high ponytail and changing into a pair of black running shorts and a white t-shirt. As an afterthought, she grabbed her phone and put it in her pocket before running back downstairs and out the door.

Blaise took a deep breath of fresh air after she locked the door and gate behind her. It really was a nice day. The sky was clear and it was comfortably warm outside. She stood contentedly for a few seconds before turning and jogging down the street. Blaise didn't plan to jog all morning, just wanted to go several blocks and come back. But, of course, plans don't always work out... especially when you know the Ouran High School Host Club.

Blaise was just rounding a corner, organizing in her head a list of chores she had to do, when, next moment, she was sitting in a limo.

What the heck?

Blaise sat there in confusion. She had been jogging just a second ago, and now... what? Then she noticed the people who were in the limo with her and oh crap.

Let's back track a bit.

When Blaise stepped out of her house, she hadn't noticed the black limo idling a little ways down the street. As she turned the opposite way for her jog, the limo began to follow. It sped up so that it passed her and stopped at the curb where she was going to make a turn. While Blaise wasn't paying attention, Hikaru and Kaoru exited the limo and hid behind the wall of a building. When Blaise turned the corner, Hikaru opened the limo door and Kaoru pushed the unsuspecting girl into the vehicle.

Now, Blaise sat in her seat and blinked at the boys around her. Hikaru and Kaoru were getting in on the other end of the limo, high-fiving each other. On the edge of the seat closest to the twins were Mori (as stoic as ever) and Honey, who was sitting next to his tall friend, swinging his legs and hugging his stuffed bunny, Usa-chan. Next to Honey was Tamaki, who was sitting forward in his seat looking at Blaise, his eyes wide and sparkly. Lastly was Kyoya, sitting at the end of the long seat next to Tamaki. Kyoya, of course, was typing on his laptop.

Blaise looked at them all for another moment before screaming "What the hell!"

Tamaki leaned toward her some more, imaginary tail wagging. "Are you surprised, Blaise?" he asked, excitement bubbling.

"Who wouldn't be surprised, Tamaki-senpai?! You pulled me off the streets and shoved me into your limo!"

"Well, how else were we supposed to make you come with us?" Kaoru piped in, hands on his knees as he smiled innocently.

"You would have never come with us anyway," Hikaru reasoned, leaning back with his arm across the seat behind his brother.

"But this is kidnapping!" Blaise yelled again, trying to get the simple concept across to them. When they continued to look at her, Blaise sighed and asked "Where are you taking me anyway?"

"We're going to the beach!" Honey said excitedly. He threw Usa-chan in the air and caught him again.

Blaise blinked. "The beach?" She looked at Mori, the only guy in the host club who seemed to be sensible. He nodded. "But I'm not ready for something like that. I haven't packed any clothes."

"Don't worry about that," Kyoya said, not looking up. "We will provide you with some at the beach house."

Blaise crossed her arms. "What about my dad, he doesn't know where I am."

"You don't have to worry about that either," the third-year continued. "I spoke to your father over the phone and he gave permission for us to take you. He thought it seemed like a good idea."

Blaise opened her mouth to say something but Kyoya spoke again.

"And it doesn't matter if you don't want to go. This is a mandatory club trip. Everything has already been prepared for for your stay. If you don't go, I will have to charge you for the expenses."

Blaise huffed and turned her head to look out the window. How the hell does he know what I'm going to say? Is he a mind reader or does he just happen to think of everything. Blaise thought the latter was more likely. He's so calculating.

The girl turned to Tamaki, a question forming in her mind. "If the whole club has to be there, then where's Haruhi?"

"We're going to get her right now!" Tamaki said as if he could hardly contain himself. He was sitting on his seat and wiggling like an excited puppy.

"Well, she'll be happy about that," Blaise muttered sarcastically before staring out the window in boredom. She watched as houses passed by, wondering where Haruhi actually lived. Eventually, they stopped outside of an apartment complex.

Grinning at each other, the twins stepped out of the limo and shut the door.

Blaise looked up at the building, silently taking in the two stories and rows of identical front doors. Then, at an angle, she saw Haruhi in a light blue t-shirt and cargo shorts walk out of a door on the second floor. She seemed to wave to someone as she stepped out. Just as the unsuspecting girl reached the bottom steps, Hikaru and Kaoru picked her up by her arms and threw her into the limo so she sat right next to Blaise.

"What the-? Hey!" Haruhi protested as she was unceremoniously shoved into the limo. "What do you guys think you're doing?"

"Taking you to the beach," the twins stated simply as they slid back into the limo.

"Since when were we going to the beach?! I was planning on going to the market and doing laundry today!"

The limo began to drive away as Tamaki asked innocently "But this is a club trip! Aren't you excited, Haruhi?"

"No, not really."

Tamaki hung his head in depression at those words.

"And what about my dad? Couldn't I have at least told him where I was going?"

"I've already taken care of that," Kyoya said, still typing.

Haruhi stared at him. "You're still talking with him, aren't you, senpai?"

Kyoya briefly looked up at her and smiled. "Of course."

Haruhi hung her head tiredly. Then she looked sideways at Blaise. "You got kidnapped too, huh?"

Blaise looked at her with a grimace. "Yeah. Join the club. Do they do this often?'

The older girl grimaced back. "Just don't expect this to be a one-time thing."

Blaise sighed and slumped back into her seat. "Great."


Several hours later, the host club was on the Ootori's private beach in Okinawa. Blaise sat under an umbrella with Haruhi and some guests, watching as Tamaki chased a beach ball across the sand. Not far away, the twins were setting up a volley ball net. Honey and Mori were in the water with some girls, Honey sitting on Mori's back as he swam, the girls watching from nearby. Kyoya sat in a beach chair, notebook in hand, chatting with a few guests. Haruhi soon went off to get some drinks and Blaise was left with the girls.

"So, has the host club been here before?" Blaise asked curiously.

"Oh yes." One of her guests, Akira, answered. "They came here last year. It was really fun!"

Blaise smiled at her. "Well then I'm glad that I'm here with you girls."

They blushed.

Just then, the twins walked up.

"Hey, Blaise," Hikaru called. "We're going to play volleyball."

Blaise looked up at him with a deadpan expression. "I'm sorry, but I think you've mistaken me for someone who actually cares."

"Well you're nice," he grouched back.

"We just wanted to ask if you would keep score," Kaoru added.

"No."

"Fine." Hikaru stuck his nose in the air and turned away. "We'll just ask Haruhi. He'll be more useful than you anyway, since he can probably count higher than you."

"And you apparently." Blaise shot back. "Since you needed help counting in the first place."

Hikaru clicked his tongue. "Come on, Kaoru," he said as he stomped away.

"Okay," Kaoru said before following his brother.

Blaise smirked as they walked away.

The girls around her looked at each other.

"Blaise?" Akira asked.

"Yeah?"

"Um. Can I ask why you don't like Hikaru and Kaoru?"

Blaise thought about it. "Well, it's not so much Kaoru as it is Hikaru, but they just really annoy me."

"Well, try not to be too hard on them, okay?"

Blaise scoffed. "Why?"

Akira glanced at the ground. "I just think that it would be better if you three were friends."

"They don't need me as a friend. I'm sure they have plenty."

Another guest, Naomi, glanced at Akira. "Uh... No, not really."

Blaise looked at her in curiosity.

What?

Naomi met her host's gaze. "See, before they joined the host club, Hikaru and Kaoru were always alone. They were always by themselves and didn't talk to anyone but each other."

Blaise just looked at them. "They were... alone?"

The girls nodded. Blaise turned, thinking, and watched as the twins jumped Haruhi as she came back, making her curse and spill the drinks she was toting.


A few hours later, the twins were sitting on a low stone wall bordering the beach.

"I'm bored, Kaoru."

"Me too. What should we do?"

Hikaru sighed. "I don't know."

They sat there for a while, thinking.

"Wanna play game?" Kaoru asked.

"Hm. Yeah. Ok. Do you have one in mind?"

"...No."

The twins thought some more. They watched as Blaise hit the volley ball over the net and Tamaki hit it back. She had been forced to play by several parties: her guests begged her and Tamaki wouldn't stop jumping around like a kid high on sugar until he got some "bonding time" with his "daughter."

Hikaru sat up a bit. "Hey, remember that game we played last year?"

Kaoru looked over. "Finding what Haruhi was afraid of?"

The older twin nodded. "Let's play it again, but this time with Blaise."

"You want to find out what Blaise is afraid of?"

"Yeah. I mean, we don't have anything else to do."

Kaoru thought about it. He was bored. "Okay."

So, for the majority of the rest of their afternoon, Hikaru and Kaoru attempted to discover Blaise's greatest fears. They tried most of the things they did last year with Haruhi. They took Blaise into the cove to see if she was afraid of the dark. She wasn't. Then they tried seeing if she was afraid of the paranormal. She wasn't afraid of that either. Then Hikaru casually swung a knife around that he got from... somewhere... to see if she was afraid of sharp objects. She didn't even flinch. Finally, they decided to take her on top of the small cliff that Haruhi was pushed off of last year to see if she was afraid of heights.

Of course, they couldn't ask her to go with them, she would refuse out of spite. So, they casually put the thought into one of their guest's heads to suggest it. Now, they were standing on top of the rock, gazing over the water as the sun began to set.

"Oh, it feels so good up here!" one of the girls exclaimed. "And the view is so pretty! What do you think?" she asked, turning to Blaise.

The host smiled at her. "Yeah. It's breathtaking."

The girls gazed at her in admiration while the twins went to stand on either side of her.

"You really think so?" the older twin asked.

"Aren't you afraid of falling?"

Blaise took a step away from them. "No. What is with you guys today? Are you trying to scare me or something?"

"Noooo..." Hikaru said slowly.

"What makes you say that?" his younger brother asked innocently.

Blaise narrowed her eyes at them "Never mind," she said, knowing that no matter how much she asked, they would never reveal what they were up to. Besides, it didn't matter if they were trying to find out what she was afraid of. There was really only one thing that scared... no, terrified her, and they would never be able to guess no matter how many times they tried.

Hikaru and Kaoru were about to say something when one of the girls screamed. "Oh my god! Someone's drowning!"

The three hosts looked at her in alarm.

"Where?" Blaise asked sharply.

The girl shakily pointed somewhere in the deeper parts of the water. "Over there! I saw someone dive there a few minutes ago and I haven't seen them come up yet!"

Blaise didn't wait for her to say anything else, she just shoved her glasses at Kaoru and dove off the cliff.

One of the girls gasped. "Blaise!"

"Be careful!" another yelled.

"He's so brave." A third girl marveled.

"Hurry! He'll come back on the beach!"

All the girls rushed off.

Hikaru and Kaoru watched as, what they knew to be Blaise, swam off in the direction the girl had pointed.

"Well, now we definitely know she's not afraid of heights."

"Or drowning," Kaoru said, worried and slightly impressed. He was also a little exasperated that his brother didn't seem to be worried at all. "We should go wait down at the beach too."

Hikaru hummed in agreement. In truth, he was also worried.

Together, the two made their way down.


It had been on instinct that Blaise dove into the water. Now, she swam furiously in the direction the girl had pointed out to her, focusing on her breathing and strokes, keeping a rhythm so that she could go as fast as she could and not burn out her stamina too quickly. It took her a few minutes to reach the place.

Blaise stopped to tread water, trying to make out if someone surfaced. When she didn't see anyone, she dove under the water and forced her eyes open. The salt stung slightly, but Blaise concentrated more on what she was looking for. Eventually she ran out of oxygen and had to go back up for more before diving again. She couldn't see anyone. She had to swim up for air several times as she searched. Just when she thought the girl must have seen a piece of driftwood, she heard a girl's voice.

"H-Help!"

Blaise jerked her head toward it, just in time to see a hand go under the water. Adrenaline coursed through her body as she swam to where the hand had disappeared. She gasped at almost being dragged under by a current. That's when she understood what must have happened, the girl must have gotten caught in the riptide, panicked, and tried to go against it.

Calmly, Blaise took a breath and dove. She opened her eyes and looked through the water, spying the girl floating nearby. She quickly swam over to her, put an arm around her waist and dragged her up. Their faces broke the surface and Blaise looked over at the girl, her heart stopping when she saw that she wasn't moving. Blaise did her best to keep calm and just keep their heads above water. She knew that going against the current was a mistake, she had to ride it and wait for it to let her go. It was tiring to tread water for so long while holding who she now knew to be Naomi, her guest from earlier, but it was the only thing she could do.

Taking a steadying breath, she tightened her hold on Naomi and braced herself for the long haul.


About ten minutes after Blaise jumped into the ocean, all the hosts and guests were watching in shock and apprehension as Blaise dragged the body of a girl onto the beach. She was clutching her waist with one arm and holding one of the girl's arms around her shoulders with the other. Blaise trudged ashore, obviously exhausted. Once she reached dry sand, she laid the girl on her back and collapsed onto her hands and knees, gasping for breath.

"Blaise, are you alright?" Tamaki asked worriedly, kneeling in the sand beside her.

"I'm okay," Blaise managed through her panting. She glanced at the girl beside her. "Not sure about her though."

"I've already called an ambulance," Kyoya assured.

Blaise moved so that she was right next to the girl, and bent her head to her chest to listen. Her heart sank when she didn't hear anything. "They won't get here in time. She needs CPR."

"Well what are we going to do?" Tamaki asked in a panicked tone.

"Move," Blaise said to him.

"But-"

"Tamaki-senpai, just let me do it. I'm certified."

Tamaki hesitated only briefly before complying.

Blaise tilted the still girl's head back before breathing a breath of air into her mouth. Then, she firmly put her hands on the girl's chest and rhythmically pressed down several times. Blaise repeated the process while the beach held its breath.

Hours seemed to drag by, though they were only minutes, until finally, Naomie coughed and spat up water. Her eyes fluttered open and she laid there, alive, her breathing shallow.

Blaise smiled down at her. "Welcome back."

"...Blaise?" Naomi croaked. "You saved me."

"I guess I did," Blaise said a little sheepishly. Then, one of the girls, Akira, ran and collapsed on the other side of the girl, breaking down and expressing how worried she was between sobs. Everyone stood in relieved silence and, not long afterward, the ambulance arrived. They put Naomi on a stretcher and carried her away. Then, after they found out that Blaise was the one who saved her, they asked her if they could check her over and make sure she was okay. Blaise begrudgingly agreed and was taken away. After that, the guests talked among themselves while the hosts did the same.

"Did any of you know that Blaise knew CPR?" Tamaki asked.

Everyone shook their heads. Then there was a slight cough.

Haruhi glared over at Kyoya. "Kyoya-senpai," she said, sounding slightly irritated.

Kyoya glanced at her, then looked at everyone else. "Well of course I knew. I am in contact with her father."

"And I bet you know a lot of other things about her then," Tamaki asked pointedly, also sounding irritated. "Things that you decided not to share."

Kyoya flashed him a smile. "Naturally."

"Kyoya! How could you? How is trust supposed to form in this family if mommy keeps secrets from daddy?"

The dark-haired teen sighed. "Well, you never asked before. And if you really want to know more about Blaise, then you will have to ask her. I couldn't tell you much of anything even if I wanted to."

"Why is that, Kyo-chan?" Honey asked curiously from Mori's shoulders.

"Well, it seems that her father doesn't know much about her either."

"How can that be?" Kaoru asked.

"They live together don't they?" his older brother continued. "How can he not know about her?"

Kyoya closed his notebook to look at them. "We all know that Blaise used to live in America, correct? Apparently, her first time to Japan was the day she moved here, which was the day before the semester started. Previously to that, Blaise had not seen nor spoken to her father for ten years after he had divorced her mother and moved here. From what he knows, for about half of that time, Blaise didn't speak to anyone at all. She would speak only when spoken to and would give short, polite responses, all bias removed. Most people who knew her from that time would describe her as suddenly going mute. She even neglected to speak to her brother in that time, whom she had been very close to during their childhood. He moved here to live with their father about six years ago and soon after she stopped talking. She only recently started talking to him again this year."

Tamaki blinked. "Why would she do that? Not talk to anyone for five years..."

Kyoya looked at him. "No one knows for certain what the reason was, but no matter how much she is asked about it, she evades the topic."

"Did her father tell you anything else?" Kaoru asked.

"He told me about her other family and what she was like as a child, but he asked me not to share the information."

"Why would he do that?" Hikaru questioned.

"Mr. de Luca thinks that it would be best for Blaise if she talked about herself when she was ready."

The rest of the host club looked over at where Blaise was sitting and being examined by the medics. They couldn't help but wonder about the mysterious girl and realize how much they didn't know about her.

As Hikaru stared, he couldn't help but think "That must have been so... lonely."


A/N: This chapter seems a little more serious than my previous ones, but I hope that I'm not boring you and that you still enjoyed and laughed a little. So, I gave you more to think about with Blaise. Don't worry, I will to give you the pieces to that puzzle... eventually. And I made Hikaru and Blaise discover a little something about each other. Now they understand each other more! Kinda. Writing this story frustrates me a little. I am tempted to just skip to the romance because, in my head, Hikaru and Blaise are so cute, but I need to build up to their relationship in order for it t be perfect! Oh, writer issues. Well, now I just want you guys to review please! I love those things! They brighten the empty darkness that is my life. See you next chapter!