"Good morning, sleepy." Tamaki greeted Haruhi quietly as he entered her hospital room, carrying a huge bouquet of red roses. Haruhi sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes, as she was just waking up. It was early in the morning. She smiled when she saw him, but put her hand over her mouth when she saw the roses. "Oh my god, you didn't." She said, breaking out in giggles. "But I did." Tamaki said, setting them down in her lap. She cradled them in her arms. He smiled warmly down to her. She shook her head, still smiling. "You're so cheesy." She said. Tamaki felt himself warm up everywhere at her smile. "Cheesy? I say I'm charming." He said, leaning down to her. He pushed her bangs back and kissed her forehead lightly. Haruhi only kept her smile. She was used to Tamaki's newly found affection towards her. Oddly, he seemed much more... mature, as of late.

"Thank you, Tamaki-senpai. They're really pretty." She said, setting them aside to pay attention to him. He pulled up a chair next to her bed, sitting down. "So. How's my princess today? You look wonderful."

"I feel okay, I guess. My head doesn't hurt. And I look horrible, you're such a liar." She said, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"Oh, I disagree. In fact, you look even more radiant than the last time I visited."

"That was less than ten hours ago."

"Mhm~"

"That doesn't work on me, Senpai. Just give it up." She said jokingly, referring to how he was looking at her with the same dreamy look he gave his regular customers at the Host Club. He fell back in his chair like he'd been shot, making Haruhi laugh even more. He sat back up straight, smiling. He looked down at his lap. Her laugh was like music to him. He had a certain pink hue to his cheeks more often than not when he was around Haruhi now-a-days. Something had changed inside him when he'd first found out about her illness. It was as if something had snapped, breaking him free from the idiotic manner he always seemed to go about in. He truly did seem to be more mature. But most of all, he'd realized his feelings towards Haruhi, and he didn't make much of an effort to hide them. By now, Haruhi had probably already realized it herself. And if she wasn't sick as she was, she would probably be pushing him away more. But along with her sickness came lack of intolerance. She didn't mind Tamaki fawning over her. It actually cheered her up a lot. Tamaki was so sweet, and he made her feel more confident in herself. It was true, Haruhi was beginning to lose her pretty skin complexion, and as she became thinner, her face was also thinning with it, making her look more like a skeleton everyday.

But to Tamaki, she was absolutely gorgeous. She was the most stunning he'd ever seen in his life.

"Senpai, you're doing it again." Haruhi's voice broke Tamaki from his daze, and he looked up to her. "Doing what?" He said, blinking, genuinely oblivious to what he had been doing that she could have noticed. "You're staring at me. Hey, you've got pretty eyes and all, but don't just sit there without saying anything." She said, more teasingly than serious. "I- Ahh." He laughed, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand. Ah, crap. There he went again with the blushing.

Haruhi laughed, looking down at her own hands. It felt so weird to be this way with Tamaki. Instead of constantly bickering and pushing him away when he tried to hug her, or squeeze the life out of her while doing so, she was sitting here calmly, having a silly little conversation with him, laughing at his stupid jokes and watching him blush occasionally, which he thought she didn't notice. She could tell now, and she wondered why it never occurred to her before. The way he acted, the way he looked at her. Haruhi was pretty oblivious when it came to love, but she was pretty sure someone who loved you like a father didn't look at you with the same eyes Tamaki did. So maybe Tamaki wasn't just her senpai. Maybe their relationship really was changing...

As Haruhi sat and thought, her smile slowly faded. Her thoughts of Tamaki and how the relationship between them could change were replaced by doubts, and her brow furrowed slightly. Right now was a horrible time to fall in love. Right now was a terrible time to suddenly decide to change her relationship with one of the guys. Right now... was a horrid time to start absolutely anything new in her life... A life that... was bound to end sooner or later...

Her vision blurred with tears welling up in her eyes. That was the first time she'd ever clearly considered the fact that... despite how much treatment, how much medicine they gave her... it was more likely that she'd die than survive this disease...

Her vision blurred with tears.

"...Haruhi?" Tamaki blinked, noticing that Haruhi had been staring down at her lap without speaking for a while. He gasped lightly when he saw tears begin to drop on the sheet below her. "H-Haruhi, what's wrong?" He said, bringing his hand to touch her face, turning her head to look at him. Tears spilled down her face, and Tamaki placed both hands now on each side of her face, wiping her tears away with his thumbs. "Haruhi..." He said quietly.

Haruhi's face was turning red as she cried. Her voice quivered severely, "I can't walk, Tamaki. I can hardly breath sometimes and it's a struggle just to eat. I can't go to school, I can't be a host, I can't study, when I try to read my books my vision blurs and I have to stop. All I can do is sit in this bed and wait to die!" Her voice broke, and she shook. Haruhi had finally gotten fed up with all of it. She was sick of being sick. She wasn't brave, no matter how she may try to be. She wasn't strong. It was all such a phony lie... And she couldn't take it anymore.

Tamaki took a breath. His heart was pounding, and breaking for her at the same time. He wanted so badly to make it all go away...

"Haruhi..." Tamaki decided to do the only thing he could think of to comfort her. She didn't have the strength to fight it. He leaned forward and pulled her into his arms, holding her close. He closed his eyes tight, his eyebrows furrowing.

"Please... Don't give up on yourself, Haruhi..."

Her eyes widened.

Please don't give up on me yet, Haruhi.

Her memory flashed back to the past briefly.

Never! Keep fighting, Mom! Mhmhm.

She let her eyes close, and the tears fall. "Mom..." She whispered quietly, not loud enough for Tamaki to hear. She wrapped her arms around his waist as he held her. Tamaki got shivers for a moment at her touch. She sniffled, burying her face in his chest, for once accepting Tamaki's embrace. He put his hand on the back of her head, petting her hair down. He didn't say anything more to her. He's said just enough.

After that day, the two of them never spoke of it again. Tamaki never mentioned anything about her death, and it was his way of refusing to accept the possibility of her non-survival. He simply couldn't do it. He had to keep hope that somehow, some way, she would survive this horrible illness.