They hadn't noticed the limousine come to a stop. When the door opened, Haruhi scuttled away from Tamaki again. "We've arrived, miss." The chauffer held out a white gloved hand. She quickly climbed out the door, refusing the chauffer's help. Tamaki followed. In the distance, Haruhi noticed a figure. For a moment, she forgot the rain and just stood, squinting at the shadow. The boy stared back, eyeing the limousine. Eyeing Tamaki. His eyes were angry, but the corners of his mouth were pulled up into a smirk. Anger coiled up in her stomach.
Another crash of lightening jogged her memory, and she sprinted up the stairs and into her apartment. She kicked off her dripping shoes by the door. Behind her, she could hear another pair of footsteps that had followed her into her apartment. She jumped and spun to face the intruder.
"Get out of my house!" She screamed. She gasped when she saw the face of the intruder she was screaming at.
"What the hell?" Tamaki said, "I give you a ride home, and this is how you repay me?"
"Sorry," said Haruhi, still yelling. "I thought you were someone else."
"Who else would I be?!"
Haruhi sighed. "Nothing, I just thought I saw someone outside." A memory came to Haruhi's mind.
"Hey," a voice shouted. "Little girl, come here!" Haruhi, age thirteen, turned to face the boy.
"What do you want?"
The boy laughed, menacingly. "Oh, you're feisty. I didn't expect much from the tranny's daughter."
Haruhi's head grew hot with anger. "There's nothing wrong with my dad, and there's nothing wrong with me." She said, calmly.
"Dad?" he jeered, "You mean, you don't call him 'Mommy'? It doesn't bother you that your daddy's a fag?"
"Don't call him that!" Haruhi clenched her tiny fists.
"Or what? You won't do anything. You're just a fag's daughter. Good thing your mom's dead, huh? Now your daddy can be the mom he's always wanted to be. When your mommy died, I bet he thought to himself, 'good riddance.'" The corners of his mouth twisted into a crooked smirk.
"He did not!" Haruhi yelled. "Don't you dare talk about my mom and dad like that!"
The boy lifted her up by the shirt collar. "Shut up, kid," he growled. "You're unwanted. You're not even meant to be here. Your dad's a faggy tranny. He didn't love your mom, so how could he love you?"
"THAT'S NOT TRUE!" Haruhi screamed.
The boy dropped her onto the ground, and she landed on her knees. Tears stung in her eyes. The boy's shoe drove into her stomach and she fell over onto the ground. While she was weak and in pain, he reached into her pocket and pulled out nothing. "Figures," he said, angrily. "You don't have any money anyway. You were a waste of time. He turned his back to her and walked away. Just before he turned away, he said, "Tell your daddy 'hi' for me." Haruhi gave the boy a look that could freeze fire.
Haruhi was called back into reality by Tamaki's hand waving in front of her face. She shook her head. "But anyway," she said, "Why are you in my house, Sempai?"
"I was just making sure you got in okay," he replied.
"Well thanks, but I'm inside now. You can leave." Her words were interrupted by a crash of thunder and a loud scream. Out of habit, she ran and hid under her kotatsu table like she always did during storms. Tamaki walked to the table and knelt in front of it, peering under the blanket. Haruhi's fearful expression made his heart ache, but he smiled.
"Are you sure you don't want me to stay with you? You look like you could use the company."
"I'm fine," she lied. She knew she wanted the company, and yet she kept pushing him away. Suddenly, the words Tamaki had said back at the school played back in her head.
"You are so afraid to cause other people trouble, that you cause more trouble for yourself… Some people offer to help because they truly care about you, and they don't like to see you unhappy." The last sentence reverberated in her head. She was brought back to reality when Tamaki stood up and sighed.
"Well, I won't force you to let me stay. If you're sure…"
"Wait!" Haruhi's voice was small, but full of meaning. "Will you…" she poked her head out from under the table. "Will you stay with me?"
Tamaki blushed again and smiled. "I'd be delighted."
