Bah, sorry for the impossibly long wait between the last chapter and this one. I kinda gave up, didn't know where to go next. Buuuuut, I got it, so it's kay! :D

I do not own Ouran High School Host Club, or anything to do with it. All rights go to Hatori Bisco.

Thankfully, Thalia wasn't injured, just exhausted. So, after the doctors had looked her over, they conceded that she could go home. Kaoru held her protectively in his arms the entire ride home. Nobody else was allowed to touch her, she was his alone. In the car, he got more time to look at her face, every single little feature that he adored, from the freckle on her eyelid to the shape of her lips. She was perfect in every way possible, and he would never let her go again. Kaoru made this promise to himself as he lifted her small hand and placed a delicate kiss on it.

Thalia stirred and smiled softly up at Kaoru. His amber eyes seemed to be glowing, full of warmth. For the umpteenth time, she wondered how one of the gods of a school for the rich managed to fall in love with her. But she was finally starting to accept that, cause she didn't want to jinx herself, heaven forbid.

"Hello, beautiful." Kaoru grinned down at the petite girl in his lap. She smiled back up at him. "Hullo." Said Thalia, her speech still slurred with sleep.

"I hate to wake you up, love, but we're home. D'you think you can walk inside?" Thalia nodded and sat up, stretching her joints. They were a bit sore, but she'd probably feel better after some more rest. The chauffeur opened the door for her, and she shakily got up. Thalia almost fell, but Kaoru was quickly by her side, gently grabbing her elbow. He promptly linked her arm in his as to prevent any more accidents, and walked inside at a brisk pace, practically dragging her along. He apparently was very eager to make sure she got all the sleep she needed.

"Mom! Dad! We're home!" Kaoru called out as he opened the door. To his surprise, his mother actually returned the call. "We're in the living room, dear! We have a guest!" Clearly befuddled, the ginger-haired boy led Thalia into the living room. The scene in front of him just worsened his state of confusion.

Thalia tried her hardest to not scream and run away, but she still trembled at the sight of the girl sitting in the middle of the couch. She didn't know the girl's name, but she definitely remembered her face. This was the girl that had led the attack, the one that had first slapped her and the girl that had beaten her the worst. Thalia didn't know why this girl was here, nor did she want to. All Thalia wanted was to get away, to hide under the covers. But the most she could do was quiver and hold tighter onto Kaoru. She wasn't sure, but Thalia thought she could see the girl looking at her, like one would look at a spider in their shower. It was a look of revulsion and disgust. But neither of Kaoru's parents seemed to register the girl's expression.

But since the girls that had beaten Thalia had kept their identities a secret, Kaoru could only guess as to why Thalia was shaking beside him. He caught the girl's eye, and she smiled sweetly at him. He remained expressionless.

"Kaoru, dear, this is Mikuru Nunomeka. Her father runs a well-known textile company. He and I had a talk, and he agreed that either you or Hikaru could marry his daughter. Since she insisted that it was you, we've arranged for you and her to be married. Isn't that splendid?" She grinned obliviously at Kaoru, ignoring how his and Thalia's hands were intertwined.

"Mother, forgive me for turning up your offer, but I've already made a promise. A promise that I intend to keep." His mother's smile faded. "What kind of promise?" She asked, an undertone of annoyance in her voice.

At this point, Kaoru pulled Thalia in closely to him. "I promised Thalia that I would never leave her. She's the girl I'm going to marry, mother." Kaoru's mother looked at him sharply. "Now, now, Kaoru. I let you have your fun with the little poor girl, but you honestly didn't think I'd let you get married to her, did you? What good would that do us?"

Kaoru tried to plead. "She really couldn't get engaged to Hikaru?" His mother shook her head. "Mikuru insisted. Either you two get married, or no deal."

He bit his lip, trying to find a way out. There was one thing, but was he willing to go that far? He looked to his left, where Thalia was pressed up against him. She looked up at him, and an arrow drove through Kaoru's heart. Her eyes were shining with tears threatening to spill over. She was hurting, and badly. She had just gotten Kaoru back, and now she was going to lose him again, this time for good. "It's okay, do what you have to." She whispered as her gaze fell to the floor. Her shoulders shook as she started to cry silently.

That was the last straw for Kaoru. If there was a way, of course he'd take it. He'd do anything for Thalia. "If being a Hitachiin means that I have to marry a girl I don't love, and break the heart of the girl that I do, then I don't want anything to do with it. I denounce my Hitachiin name. Let's go, Thalia." He took her hand and whirled around, slamming the front door behind him. He walked until he reached a park several blocks away. By this time, most of his steam had worn off.

Thalia was in shock for most of the trip. Only when Kaoru came to a stop and looked at her did she realize what just happened. Kaoru had just left his family. For her.

"Kaoru, you do realize what you've done, right?" She asked him softly, placing a hand on his cheek. Kaoru closed his eyes and leaned into her touch. "Yeah, I do."

"Why? First the host club, now your own family." It made absolutely no sense to her.

He looked down at Thalia and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Really, I'm glad I did. The host club and my social class were the things putting such a distance between us, the things keeping us from being together properly. Now, I'm right with you. I'm not a prince anymore." He smiled ruefully then kissed her like he never kissed her before.

Thalia broke away, gasping for air. "Kaoru, what do we do now?" She asked. Well, wasn't that the question of the century? Frankly, Kaoru had no idea. He really hadn't thought it out. "Well, er, honestly, I hadn't the slightest clue. I was hoping you'd figure something out." Thalia bit her lip and thought for a few moments. "Well, one of the other host club members would gladly take us in for now. I mean, there's really not much left to the school year. Then we can take a plane, get the hell out of here. I'd love for you to come meet my friends and family." She grinned at the thought.

Kaoru seemed to share her enthusiasm. "Of course." In the end, they ended up staying at Hunny's, where Kaoru watched in shock as Thalia and the blond senior ended up polishing off four cakes before bed. (Sure, Hunny ate most of them, but Thalia probably ate the equivalent of an entire cake on her own.)

The next day, Kaoru and Thalia both agreed to stay home. Thalia still needed the rest, and Kaoru didn't feel like going to school and seeing Hikaru. But, of course, the effort was futile, as Hikaru showed up at the door right after school. Kaoru really didn't want to know what his brother had to say, but Thalia was afraid Hikaru would start screaming at her, blaming the entire thing on her again. So Kaoru opened the door. Sure enough, you could practically see the steam coming out of the older twin's ears.

"Alright, your dramatic little stunt last night was funny as hell, time to come home." Hikaru said.

"That's not home anymore." Replied Kaoru.

Hikaru rolled his eyes. "Like hell it isn't. Come on, you damn drama queen. I'm not letting you leave home because of a damn girl."

"She's not just any girl-"

"Yeah, I've heard it before. Really, don't you think quitting the host club was enough? I'm sick of you following her around like a damn puppy. This is ending. Now."

Kaoru shook his head sadly. "Sorry, Hikaru. But I meant it. I'm marrying Thalia, and nothing's stopping me. She's not gonna cry over me, not anymore."

Hikaru's eyes hardened. "So, that's it? In the end, she means more to you than I do?"

Kaoru froze. "No, Hikaru, that's not it at a-"

"Yes, it is. You said it last night. You denounced the Hitachiin name. That means that you'd rather be with Thalia than related to me. Thank you, Kaoru. It's nice to know that I meant so much to you." And with that, Hikaru turned around and left.

"Hikaru, wait!" Kaoru called out to his brother, but it was too late. Hikaru was already gone. "Dammit!" Kaoru hit the doorframe with the side of his fist. Just like that, he'd lost his own brother. Behind him, Kaoru heard Thalia say his name. She was sitting on the floor behind him, her face half-buried in an oversized purple teddy bear. "I'm so sorry," she murmured. Her whole face disappeared into the plushie. Thalia did the best she could to hide her crying. In fact, Kaoru couldn't even tell until he sat down next to her, and saw her shoulders quiver slightly. Sure enough, when he took the teddy away, her face was tear-streaked and blotchy. "Oh, Kaoru, I'm so so sorry! I've completely ruined your life! You don't even have your family anymore, thanks to me!" Kaoru started rubbing away her tears with his thumb. "I should've drowned in that damn river." She muttered.

For the first time in his life, Kaoru glared at Thalia. "Thalia Gillespie, you look at me." When she continued to glumly stare at the floor, her put his hands on either side of her face and pulled it up to his. "Don't you ever think that, do you hear me? My life would be empty without you. You light up my world. You give it color, you give it meaning. For the first time in my life, I have something, someone worth living for. I didn't just leave last night to make you happy. I did it because there would be no possible way for me to spend the rest of my life with anybody but you. I'm going to marry you, we're going to have a happy family, and live in a nice house, and dammit, we're going to grow old together. I'm going to make that happen, because I want that. Is that clear?" She nodded. "I love you." He said before pressing his lips against hers.

"I love you, too, Kaoru." Thalia whispered in between kisses. Kaoru was right. No matter what, it'd be okay, because Kaoru was there for her, and he always would be.