Author's Note: The story is actually pretty serious in this chapter, although we tried to lighten it up a bit with some fluffy twin interaction.

This also marks the first time I planned on giving Kyouya spoken dialogue. This was the point in the RP where Ray and I really stopped glossing over the other host club members in a half-assed manner. I promise they'll get more love in the future. Starting with the next chapter! :)

Anyway. I hope you like it!


They didn't care what anyone else thought.

But they had to.

The two of them were always contradicting themselves like that.

Tamaki looked concerned after the eldest Hitachiin stormed out of the third music room while Kaoru sat there staring at the floor in silence. The last two days had been strange even for them, but the host club king had the grace to not say anything to the younger twin as long as their guests were still there.

Kaoru's first instinct had been to follow Hikaru, but that would have been even more suspicious. So the younger twin resigned himself to staying put and keeping the girls company. He smiled nervously as they continued to giggle about the newest display of brotherly love.

-x-x-x-

Hikaru barged into the restroom, letting out a frustrated growl as he gripped the edges of the sink.

"Dammit!"

Thankfully the restrooms were empty due to most of the students having left for the day. Hikaru didn't have the patience to deal with anyone else right now, but didn't have the presence of mind to appreciate his good fortune, either. He was annoyed, out of frustration at his lapse in judgment as well as how tight his pants felt at the moment.

Running the cold water, he splashed it over his heated face and the back of his neck, looking up to scowl at himself in the mirror. They were supposed to be good actors, so why the hell couldn't he hide how much he had been affected, much less suppress a stupid blush?

As he stared at his reflection, however, his expression gradually softened. When he looked at it, it was almost like looking at Kaoru.

He bit down softly on his lower lip as he pressed his palm against the mirror, sighing.

"I'm sorry, Kaoru... I always do stuff without thinking..." Hikaru murmured, as if he was speaking to the genuine article.

The cool surface of the glass was a sharp contrast to the warmth that Kaoru's hand would have provided had he really been there, and he blinked as that realization sank in. Kaoru was not there. But Hikaru felt oddly relieved that his little brother wouldn't witness the breakdown of his composure.

He knew Kaoru would forgive him for his flub, considering they both held their share of the responsibility. On the other hand, everyone in the music room today had witnessed their kiss.

Flirting and hinting was one thing, but today marked a brand new kind of display, and pushed the boundaries of performance. Even for the twins.

Because in reality, Hikaru hadn't been acting at all during that kiss. His reaction had derived purely from what he wanted in that moment, selfishly throwing all caution to the wind.

He didn't want to think about the consequences of the mistake. Never wanted to address them.

Hikaru was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't notice the soft creaking of the door that would have alerted him to the presence of someone else.

"I guess it makes sense now," said a voice, "why you two are always spaced off in your own little world. Why you're so mean to everyone else."

Hikaru dropped his hand from the mirror, startled, whirling around at the sound.

Odd. This was the boy's restroom, but it wasn't a boy that had come to use the facilities.

A girl stood in the doorway, an unreadable expression plastered on her face as she stared at him.

Hikaru's eyes narrowed and his fingers curled into a fist in irritation. He really didn't want to be bothered right now.

He stared back, the shock on his face swiftly changing to indignation. As what she said sank in, he gritted his teeth, choosing not to dignify her words with a real response.

Hikaru couldn't shake the impression that he knew this girl from somewhere. But whether he knew her or not, that still didn't make it any of her business.

"I think you have the wrong bathroom, miss," he said coldly, his voice oddly flat.

"Oh, no. I came looking for you, you see."

The corners of her mouth curled into a wicked grin when he finally addressed her—and with such irritation, too. As if she enjoyed seeing him so ruffled.

"You're Hikaru, right? You're the angry one," she concluded, without waiting for his answer. "I've been watching the two of you for a while."

The girl fished around in the pocket of her uniform and grasped a sealed envelope. She tossed it onto the edge of the sink in front of the baffled boy.

Hikaru looked more than a little confused, as he wondered how this girl might know him. Trying to put her face to a time and place, he knew he must have done something to piss her off, considering the look of distaste in her eyes.

His eyes fell to the envelope in front of him, staring blankly.

"The last time we spoke, you gave me a suggestion. Do you remember what that suggestion was, Hitachiin Hikaru?"

-x-x-x-

Kaoru had begun to worry about his brother.

It had been a while since Hikaru left for the bathroom, and he wondered if everything was okay in there.

Hikaru had been so flustered when he left, almost as if he had a—

Kaoru's eyes widened slightly.

Surely he wasn't doing... that in the restroom, was he?

The idea made Kaoru's blush return in full force. Much to his dismay, the girls sitting with him noticed, and they prodded him again with questions about his relationship with with his brother.

-x-x-x-

Hikaru snatched up the envelope and and opened it. Inside were torn pieces of paper—remnants of a letter. Without further investigation, it dawned on him what the letter had been, and who this girl was.

He looked up at her with an expression that was fairly unreadable, except for a hint of something behind his eyes—a sort of helplessness.

He was put on the spot—without his other half—and she knew it.

From the look on her face, she was enjoying it immensely.

Hikaru considered playing dumb, but he was already in enough hot water.

He swallowed hard.

"I said... you should come up with a better confession," he said softly, his voice monotone.

Now that he'd said it, he looked incredulously from the envelope in his hand, to the girl.

"Don't tell me you actually wrote one... you seem like you really hate me now." Hikaru laughed humorlessly, running a hand through his hair—a habit that seemed to have recently formed as a reaction to anxiety.

"Oh, no." She smiled sweetly. "You misunderstand, Hikaru. I haven't come to confess anything."

"So what's the point of you coming to me with this now, then?"

"Oh, the letter is just to serve as a reminder that the two of you need to be taught a valuable lesson before treating another girl so poorly."

Hikaru stared at her, a sick feeling building inside his stomach.

"But the real reason I came," she continued, "is because I just wanted to show you something interesting. I'm sure everyone else would be interested in knowing why you two only ever cared about yourselves, too."

Her tone instantly put Hikaru on guard. Looking at his past thrust under his nose was a little much, and he narrowed his eyes. Whatever was interesting to her couldn't possibly spell good news for him or Kaoru.

She produced a photograph, recently taken. The picture was still developing—who still used instant cameras, anyway—but it was easy to tell what the subject was as she dangled it in front of his face.

"Cute, huh?"

Hikaru paled as he saw his kiss with Kaoru, now immortalized, and finally got a good look at how their little scene must have looked to everyone else.

Their exchange had lasted a scant fifteen seconds, at best. But the kiss in the photo could not be mistaken for anything chaste or fraternal. It looked, for lack of a better term, horny. Hikaru could even make out a glimpse of his tongue passing into Kaoru's mouth, which made it seem even less innocent, if it was even possible.

He lifted his hand, almost in a daze as he stared at the evidence of their overt affection, and she abruptly jerked the picture away from him before he could snatch it from her.

Hikaru snapped out of his stupor at the movement, and a rush of panic clawed at his insides. He couldn't let her believe she held sway over him—over them.

He was a good actor, and acting was exactly what he intended on doing.

Adopting a look of indifference, Hikaru shrugged.

"Things are different now. Sorry that I—we were jerks back then, but I don't see what you hope to prove. It's all fake. I trust you've noticed we do it to make the girls happy... I'm sure you're observant enough to realize that we do what we do to get results. That's all." He nodded at the photo she was holding possessively out of his reach. "This just happened to get results."

"Is that so?" She sneered.

Clearly she didn't appear to be buying it. Hikaru fought to remain calm, as he feigned a look of contemplation as he regarded her.

"I do hope you aren't trying to get on the bad side of all those other girls if you try to cause a rift in the host club," he murmured, tapping his chin with his forefinger. "We really do just want to make them happy, after all. It's what we do."

"The looks on your faces don't seem so fake to me."

"We're good actors," he insisted.

He tried to keep his cool, but it only extended as far as his face. Inside, his heart was pounding rapidly and his palms felt sweaty.

"It would be a shame if I went through all that work for a photo that was worthless," she said coolly. "I hear the editor of the school newspaper and Suou Tamaki are great friends, though. I'm sure if I give this picture to him, he can find a way to get even more 'results'."

Hikaru choked, almost laughing at the absurdity of her words.

"That guy?! He notoriously publishes scandals that aren't true. Besides... do you think anyone at Ouran Academy hasn't heard about the stuff we do in the host club? It's not news."

Hikaru felt himself starting to ramble out of nervousness, and he quickly cut it off. Excuses and distractions weren't going to do anything to make him look less guilty. But the girl wouldn't have been convinced, anyway.

She had seen what the twins were really like, and how cruel they could be. She wasn't going to let it go after all this time because he claimed the two of them had changed.

She stuffed the photograph down the front of her uniform. There was no point in waiting for him to try to steal the only good dirt she currently had on them.

"We'll just have to see what happens, won't we? I'll even have him create a headline having to do with a confession of brotherly love."

Hikaru's expression took on an almost pitying look at that point.

"It's a shame a cute girl like you has to have a heart so full of malice after two years. You're the poster child of moving on."

He smiled then, after it was clear that he'd lost the argument. But he was satisfied enough that his words would have left their mark.

"At least I don't have to satisfy myself by fucking my siblings because I've run everyone else off by being a complete asshole." She let the wicked smile that was on her face completely die. "You two are even more sick than I thought."

If Hikaru wanted malice, then she would give him malice.

The twins may have been too young to realize when it had happened, but fucking with the heart of a woman was a deadly mistake for a man.

Cute or not, she was a scorned woman, and Hikaru didn't even try to stop her as she left.

Hikaru decided to let his faith lie in the fact that she hadn't chosen the most well-respected individual at Ouran to take her photo to. The word of Komatsuzawa Akira didn't hold much weight with anyone that mattered.

He would let her believe her little delusions about the school newspaper headlines being important.

Still, somewhere inside, Hikaru was a little concerned.

He should have thanked her, though. Their exchange had quite effectively made his erection go away. Fancy that.

As he made his way back, Hikaru was glad that Kaoru had not been there to witness what had transpired. When he entered the music room and saw the concern in Kaoru's eyes, Hikaru decided he wouldn't tell him just yet, either.

Kaoru was flooded with relief when his brother sat down next to him again, but Hikaru appeared to be upset over something.

They both instantly came to the conclusion that it couldn't be discussed with guests still present, and turned as one to face the girls across the table.

"Sorry about that." Hikaru smiled. "What did I miss?"

"Ah, you didn't miss much. I was just telling them a little about mother and father."

The girls had all seemed pretty interested in listening to Kaoru speak of them, although he wasn't sure quite why. Perhaps it was just to make polite, idle chat until Hikaru returned to molest his brother some more.

That was really the only real reason the girls came, anyway.

Now that Hikaru was back, the girls seemed to have forgotten about the previous conversation and listened eagerly for the older twin to offer some sort of explanation for his delayed return.

When none came, Kaoru watched him with a look of bemusement, but still attempted to cover for him.

"Ah, princesses, Hikaru hasn't felt well since this morning, which is why we were late today, you see."

Hikaru wasn't really listening to the sympathetic responses from the girls, he was still rather irritated about one girl in particular.

Only one thing she had said truly angered him. The part about fucking Kaoru.

He'd never wanted to hit a female before in his life. Until that jab came.

How dare she talk about his baby brother like that?

Hikaru, of course, could not talk about any of the things he felt at that moment, or it would have been as good as admitting her accusation.

It wasn't fair. It wasn't anyone else's business.

He loved Kaoru more than anything else, and no one could possibly understand—least of all that stupid bitch.

His anger had not dissipated in the slightest, even being near Kaoru again. The younger twin's calmer nature would usually rub off on him to a degree. But right now, even if no one else could tell, Kaoru could see that Hikaru was holding in a lot at that moment.

Kaoru immediately knew his brother was furious from his subtle body language and the twitch in the corner of his left eye. The younger twin was smart enough and knew Hikaru well enough to know that the anger was not directed at him, however.

So then, what exactly had happened while Hikaru was in the restroom?

Kaoru had to wait to find out, because they still had guests.

Hikaru had been honest with the girl about being a good actor. He put on a charming smile, which Kaoru mimicked. He made it a point not to touch his brother again during their hosting session, but the girls didn't seem too disappointed. Actually, they hadn't seemed to take much notice at all. They were perfectly content chattering about fashion design, thanks to Kaoru's previous conversation, and they both politely answered their questions about their own interest in the field.

They carried on with their guests this way for the rest of the afternoon without a hitch.

It was almost as if they had all forgotten what had happened between the twins earlier.

Hikaru, however, knew better. He knew that there was one person that hadn't forgotten, and was determined not to let them forget.

Once the last of the customers had left the music room for the day, he no longer had to keep up his front.

Hikaru sank down in his chair, lolled his head back, and clapped his hands to his face.

They really shouldn't have come to school, he realized with a groan.

"Hikaru?" Kaoru spoke softly, tugging at Hikaru's hands so he could look at him properly.

The younger twin was extremely worried, and he wanted to talk to Hikaru about it before Tamaki could pounce on them and ask a bunch of questions that Kaoru knew would only serve to further upset his brother.

The host club king, however, seemed to have noticed Hikaru wasn't open to approach at the moment, although it was most likely with Kyouya's warning that he didn't speak to them. In fact, he encouraged the other hosts to leave them alone, as well.

Though Hikaru's hands were no longer covering his face, his eyes remained closed with an expression of anguish. Like he was wishing he could punch something really, really hard.

Of course, Hikaru knew exactly what—or who—he wanted to punch.

On the other hand, he was fighting a desperate internal battle to keep her words from getting to him.

She was the one in the wrong here, not them.

If she hadn't been so shallow as to see the twins as just two faces of a single individual, just like all the rest of them, they might have seen her as someone more worth their time.

After all, they only ever saw the faces of the Hitachiin brothers. To them, one pretty face was just the same as the other.

There was a point where their disdain for other people in general had a reason, but no one ever even tried to understand what it was like.

Not a single one of them cared about Kaoru's appreciation for English literature, or Hikaru's interest in physics.

No individuality to the outside world.

It didn't matter who they were on the inside.

It was fucking disgusting.

Kaoru could see his twin trembling with the rage he was fighting to keep bottle up inside of him. It always worried him when Hikaru acted like this, mostly because he became irrational and unpredictable when he had no way of properly letting out his feelings.

He took both of Hikaru's hands in his own as he normally did to calm him down.

All Hikaru usually needed when he acted like this was to know that at least one person was there for him and understood what he was feeling.

Kaoru was always that one person.

"Hikaru," Kaoru persisted. "Why are you so mad?"

Even though Kaoru was terribly concerned, Hikaru didn't know quite how to voice what was on his mind.

Cracking one eye open, he regarded his twin's worried face.

If people knowing what they were really like was going to cause such stress, Hikaru realized that he really didn't want other people to know them that well.

He wanted Kaoru's unique personality to only be identifiable by him.

It was Hikaru's special treasure. Something that Kaoru only fully revealed to him.

Hikaru tried to smile in a way that might comfort his baby brother, shifting uncomfortably.

"Um... I don't think mom is the only one we have to worry about," he said meaningfully, looking up at Kaoru now with both eyes wide open.

"I don't understand," Kaoru said, furrowing his brow with confusion. "Did someone say something to you?"

Now he was really worried.

Hikaru was usually one to act so nonplussed regarding most comments aimed at him or his brother, so on the rare occasion someone did get under his skin, Kaoru knew it was important.

"Let's just say... we can expect a rather interesting headline in tomorrow's school paper," he offered helplessly, averting his eyes.

Hikaru was ashamed. As the older brother, he felt he should've been able to do something to prevent being one-upped by a stupid girl with a petty grudge.

"...What?"

He was still quite angry, so much that his shoulders were shaking. His hands clamped down on Kaoru's in a tense grip as his eyebrows drew together.

"I hate her. I feel dirty for even calling her cute," Hikaru spat, without really elaborating.

He then flew into a flurry of ramblings that didn't make much sense, but he didn't know how to say it straight out to Kaoru.

"As if she really knows why we—" Hikaru bit his lip, screwing his eyes shut. "It's because of people like her that I—"

He growled, slumping down further into his chair.

Kaoru only ever needed to hear scraps of his brother's comments when he was having one of his tantrums to understand what was going on, and as Hikaru's ranting went on, the younger twin's eyes widened in horror.

"One of... those girls?"

Had she been waiting all this time for some way to get revenge on the twins for humiliating her?

Now that he thought about it, Kaoru did feel somewhat ashamed at the way he and his brother handled confessions back then, but they were in middle school.

It was only natural for them to be obnoxious, right?

While it was true most of the school knew they were odd and heard rumors of their acts, a majority of the students assumed it was just a stunt and nothing more. But with a picture of them crossing such a forbidden line of physical contact, there was a chance some of them would start spreading darker rumors.

Those rumors would likely reach the teachers, and then probably their parents.

Hikaru knew he owed Kaoru a better explanation, and he took a deep breath. He leaned forward, against Kaoru's chest, and buried his face into his twin's shoulder. It was easier for him to talk if he wasn't looking directly at him, somehow.

"I tried so hard to call her bluff, to make it sound like it was normal and stuff... and everyone had seen it before..." His voice was soft, slightly muffled by the fabric of Kaoru's shirt. "She didn't buy it. Even when I said no one believed the tabloid-ish stuff and that she was wasting her time. She showed me the picture she took... it looked—" Hikaru swallowed hard, "—very real."

"I'm sorry, Hikaru," Kaoru said quietly.

The younger twin felt responsible because he was the one who suggested they go to school, as well as the one who first kissed his brother the way a lover would.

"What? Idiot," came the immediate reply. "Don't you dare apologize. I mean... I started it when we... at home, y'know?"

Hikaru sounded a bit more like his usual self, but he also felt at fault for being the one who had let things go as far as they had. But even though he was uneasy, he found some comfort in being next to Kaoru. He was warm, and smelled of the brand of soap they both pickily insisted on using.

He sighed.

"She was wrong," Hikaru continued slowly. "We didn't... I didn't just—y'know—because I want to keep others away... you know that, right?"

It was Hikaru's own version of being scared; a sort of detachment in his words, like he wanted to distance himself from the situation itself. The girl's words really hurt Hikaru, Kaoru could tell by how hard he was struggling to grasp a sense of freedom from his guilt.

Of course the younger twin knew better than that, and reassured his brother by running his fingers gently through Hikaru's matching red hair. Kaoru now understood what exactly she said that upset him, and why.

Hikaru knew he had trouble controlling himself when he became attached to others. She had planted the thought into his head now that made him doubt his reasoning for sleeping with Kaoru, and that angered the younger twin as well.

"Hikaru, I know. I understand. She's wrong about you... about us both." Kaoru whispered to his brother so that no one else could hear. "I don't care what they say, or about what's in the newspaper tomorrow... I don't care if our mother and father try to tear us apart. You and I both know it could never happen, so why are we worried?"

Hearing Kaoru's voice was like a soothing caress over his frazzled nerves, and Hikaru unconsciously leaned into his twin's hand. The other hosts may or may not have been watching, and at this point Hikaru was still incredibly nervous about how everything looked... but Hikaru couldn't stay away.

He always had to have some form of physical touch with his brother, just to make certain he was still there. Whether it was something as simple as his leg idly brushing against Kaoru's as they sat next to one another while they entertained guests, or something as involved as holding his hand.

Hikaru didn't feel whole any other way.

He looked up at Kaoru, his eyes holding concern that only Kaoru was able to detect.

"But what if it does happen... I mean... I'm sure the editor of the newspaper will be dying to blow up that picture nice and big for the front page," Hikaru said bitterly.

"Mm, we kinda pissed him off before," Kaoru agreed somberly.

"Maybe Kyouya-senpai can help," Hikaru mused, tilting his head.

"Maybe. The problem is, we'd have to tell him what's going on. He'd never consent to doing something as big as that without knowing why we were so concerned about it..."

"...Kaoru. Do you really think we have to elaborate on what he was here to witness, anyway?"

Although, the dark-haired upperclassman always seemed to have a way of knowing everything long before anyone else. Hell, he probably already knew the twins were sleeping with each other.

Kaoru shrugged one shoulder.

"I guess we could tell him that Komatsuzawa was planning on trashing Tono again."

"Kyouya-senpai knows what he needs to know already, but I guess reminding him that bad publicity for the club may require his intervention couldn't hurt..." It was the most rational thing Hikaru said all day, but it was short lived. "Worst case scenario, I run away with you."

Hikaru wasn't kidding.

He could just picture the look on their mother's face if they dragged their family name through the dirt with a scandal.

Kaoru frowned. That was a comment born of Hikaru's irrational and panicked decision-making when he felt backed into a corner. A last resort, and Kaoru knew he was completely serious, too.

"You idiot, we can't just run off. How would we survive?"

Their money had obviously always come from their parents, and the two of them didn't have anywhere to go where the police wouldn't find them. When they were found, they would be in shit twice as deep as before.

"We'll just have to handle whatever happens," Kaoru continued. "We can do it together, right? We can do anything together."

"You're right... of course you're right." Hikaru rested his forehead against Kaoru's and sighed.

He mentally slapped himself; it wasn't his style to worry about any of this until it actually happened. Maybe it wasn't the idea of being caught that bothered him, so much as the thought that people would think he was having a relationship with his brother for reasons of pure narcissism and depravity.

He could care less what people thought of him, but he still wanted to protect Kaoru from their judgments.

"Yes, of course I'm right," Kaoru repeated, enjoying hearing Hikaru say it, and he smiled at his twin in reassurance. "Nothing can stand in the way of our world domination plans, Hikaru. You must remain strong for the good of anarchy!"

Kaoru's presence was calming, even if he was gloating a little bit about what Hikaru had just told him. Hikaru found it easier as the minutes passed to think more rationally. He even ventured a smile at Kaoru's joking.

After all, it was more in Hikaru's nature to laugh in the world's face when it tried to bring him down, and Kaoru knew exactly how to bring out that part of him.

"When we have control... every restaurant will have our favorite brand of syrup... and the world will be impeccably dressed—no more frumpy, commoner clothes. They'll all say, 'Damn those incredibly sexy Hitachiin twins, and their style, and overall awesomeness'."

"What are you saying, Hikaru? Everyone already says that about us." Kaoru gently flicked his brother's forehead as if to scold him. "We will create our own world domination brand of syrup. And lo, the Hitachiin twins said unto the peasants, 'Thou shalt have two bottles of syrup within thine house. Two and two alone, shall ye have. One is less than the two thou shalt have and three is right out.'"

They shared a laugh; nothing could ever keep one of them down in the dumps, as long as the other twin was there to raise his spirits. Considering the two of them knew each other so well, it never took much time for Kaoru to lift his brother's mood back to its same old mischievous self.

They grinned at each other, before Hikaru's gaze shifted past Kaoru's shoulder to locate Kyouya. He found him seated at a table in the corner of the room, typing away at his laptop. It also seemed the other hosts had taken their leave for the day. The twins had been so involved in their conversation, neither of them noticed when they had made their exits.

It was just as well. There was probably not going to be a more convenient time to speak to the shadow king than now.

Straightening in his chair, Hikaru composed himself carefully to appear nonchalant before he got to his feet. Offering his brother a hand, Kaoru took it without hesitation. Hikaru knew he'd come with, but he still felt responsible for taking the initiative, as most of this whole mess was his fault, the way he looked at it.

They approached the older boy, and Hikaru perched on the edge of the table on which Kyouya's laptop sat. He didn't acknowledge the redhead's presence there at first, even though it was impossible for him to miss it.

Hikaru pursed his lips. Kyouya always did have a way of getting under people's skin with crap like that.

Leaning slightly over the top of Kyouya's screen, he cleared his throat softly.

"Kyouya-senpai, we need to talk."


Disclaimer: Ouran belongs to Bisquick, not me. Rachel also referenced Monty Python and the Holy Grail. :)

The girl with the grudge is one of the many that the twins had left heartbroken when they tried to give them love letters. It may or may not have been the first one in episode 20, who knows? But as she wasn't given a name, we chose not to give her one, either.