A/N: Yay, I'm really excited!! One more chapter then some real fun begins!!
One thing to say, to those reviewers (Fk306 animelover, ixedward, KinKitsune01, Froggerton, Xtwilightdreamerx, toshirogurl, and Yami Yugi Alexander the 4th), thank you so much for your reviews. For your dedications, I need names (first and last), age, and somewhat personality (sum in a sentence). Those characters, which I will revise, will be placed for a chapter or two in the near future. Just review it in ASAP!!
Now, on with the fic!
Chapter 8
Kiss your fear…good bye
His fingers brushed along the keys, gently playing the music notes within the air. He brushed his sapphire eyes to his sheets of music, letting the exact notes hit the exact moment. It was such a treat to play, Tamaki thought. The ringlets of music caressed his ears, pushing back all the care and all the complications addressed. He also felt as if revived with the happiness he once had.
"Mama…"Tamaki whispered, but the music took over as the ruling sound. No one heard his words; the maids and butlers stood gazing at the child of optimism and also the child of sin. He should be sad. He should be mad. Hell, he should be going crazy. He was not; he was just incredibly happy…or just naïve.
"Young master, it is time for school."
Tamaki rested his fingers on the last chord of notes, enchanted by the drifting of it in the atmosphere. The notion of school was always relaxing to hear. Students would groan or complain, but he looked forward to that time. The time when his eyes would gaze upon the women who adored him, and a woman who knew who he was.
"Haruhi."
--
"Haruhi!"
The brunette watched Nami taking her time to walk over. She carried a small booklet in her hands, which appeared to have a swimmer in the midst of a pool.
"Hey, what's that?"
"Oh, I'm on the cover of Teen Swimmers!" She threw it on the desk, which actually triggered the twins to take notice of the book itself. Nami, presented with a little number of a blue one piece, was pictured doing a front crawl. Even in the picture, they could see the radiance of her wanting to be in the water. It was her element.
"Wow, you look great, Nami-chan!"
"I'll say! I mean I've never seen your mouth quite that big before." Kaoru smiled, sensing the scowl on Nami's face, but she only did it jokingly.
"Why did they do the article on you?" asked Hikaru picking up the magazine to read.
"I'm hoping to break the record for the fastest time in swimming a mile in a 50 meter pool."
The trio sat there, looking at their fellow classmate. Let's see, one mile equaled approx.1, 609 meters, which meant she swam roughly 32 laps. To think a person could accomplish such an idea would be nothing short from remarkable.
"Umm, well, good luck to that, Nami-chan," spoke Kaoru, lightly tapping the girl on the back.
"You know, Nami-chan, today and tomorrow are your last days with being a client. Are you excited?" spoke Haruhi pulling Hikaru closer, so she could look at the book as well.
"Yeah, I'm pretty glad you guys kinda made me do it. I mean, it's been almost two weeks, and I'm pretty much cured." Nami could not really believe it, to be honest. She thought she would be doing it for months, even a year, and still crash and burn.
"It pays to just be able to open yourself up, isn't it?"
"Yeah, I guess, you're right."
"Is Tamaki-san your next host?"
She shrugged her arms, barely remembering the name.
"You know the blonde guy you hit in the face?" Oh, yeah. The name was not familiar, but she would never forget the incident.
"You are going to have so much fun with our lord." It wasn't what the twins said but the way they said their comment. Every since the incident when they first met, she actually thought of him as a pervert. Needless to say, even though she overcame the twins, she did not know what to expect since he was last. Only time could tell.
--
"Welcome, my princess."
Those words were her only warning before the blonde president took his chance for advancing. His hand crept onto her chin, tipping it slightly for her eyes to reach his. The simple affection was his identity since he was known to be such a charmer. Well, to most women.
"Nami-chan, I can only think of being with you at this moment." He lowered himself closer to her, letting his lips brush slightly against her ear. "You and I here together, that's all I want."
It didn't started out big, but she could not stop it. Nami let out a short laugh, then a chime of chuckles followed. Once she heard her own chuckles, she began to feel wholehearted laughter escape her mouth, which pushed the blonde boy back. What in the world was going on, he thought.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I just can't take it anymore." Her laughter started to die out before she gave out a long, relieved sigh.
Tamaki just smiled, slumping back into the seat. This was for her anyway. Sure, he was trying to see if she would be attracted to him, but he was not going to mope about it. Maybe later though, but not right now.
"Sempai, you sure do have an interesting way to talk to a girl though." She sat back watching other clients converse between themselves or with their hosts. "I guess I can see why you're popular."
"Thank you; it is hard to sometimes display the talents that I convey."
Nami looked over to him, feeling another laughter wanting to be expressed, but she could not over do it; it would hurt his feelings.
"I saw you today on Teen Swimmers."
"Really?" To be completely honest, she did not even know if the guy liked swimming. He looked more like a guy to bathe in the sun.
"Yeah, I read you're only ten seconds to beat the time. Is it for personal reason or just for fun?"
She never really thought anybody would really take time to ask details about her work. Of course, she played with the light talk about how she could not live without water, but her reasoning was always a mystery.
Nami turned to him, letting her emerald eyes glance to him. "I think of it as both."
Something so simple to say, but there were so many questions. Tamaki poured some tea into some teacups as he delivered a cup to her and saved a cup for him. She sipped it, and then saw his eyes press her on.
"I guess I've always wanted to be good at something since my mom was good at dance. The water gives me a lot of relief—I was in this pool, swimming till I was really tired, and all I had to think about was my next stroke." She took another sip then continued. "I really think I was made for the water, but not a lot of people understand how much I love it."
"—I fully understand. I, myself, play the piano. It creates beautiful melody."
"The piano? I see you're more of a violin player," She meant it as a joke.
"Really? I could see that, tuning the string instrument as I freely could be moved while dance as I played." He placed his tea down as he stood up in front of her. He formed an air violin in his hand, pretending to strum the strings into tune. His motions were vast and slow, at first, until he decided to change the motion. Soon, dance was in order, as he closed his eyes. Too bad his eyes were closed or he would not have tripped on one of the ottomans.
"Sempai, are you all right?" Her sincerity was lost through the chimes of chuckling between her words.
He suddenly stood, carrying only a genuine smile as an idea struck into his head. "Would you like to hear me play?"
"Sure." Without even reacting, Tamaki took Nami's hand, pulling her to the destination of a piano within the room. The fine instrument perched solely in the middle, displayed a nice crème color with ivory keys. A piano suited for a king.
The blonde president sat down in front of the piano, stretching and cracking his fingers. Once his fingers began to play along the instrument, the melody flourished through the room. The scent of beauty crept into the song, gliding within every person in the room. One by one, the girls walked over to the piano, listening with sheer adoration and bliss. Even the other host members came over to enjoy or at least heckle their president.
Haruhi walked over to Nami, but Nami did not notice at all. Even when Mori and Hunny took the other side of her, she did not notice at all. All she could see was Tamaki playing and hearing his music…His song of something deeper than what other people could see.
"I guess our lord is showing off once more," spoke Hikaru taking Haruhi's side.
"Well, what do you expect, he loves the attention." Replied Kaoru shrugging his shoulders.
"As long as the clients are happy, we can indulge with his entertainment." Kyouya made a note in his notebook for the idea of Tamaki having a concert.
"Well, I like it and so does Takashi, right Takashi?" The tall boy looked down to his blonde cousin, nodding to the assumption he made.
"What do you think of it, Nami?" asked Haruhi, but her word trailed when she saw the girls face.
Nami pushed through the crowd of girls, brushing against their side or back to get to Tamaki. She stood there waiting for him to finish. His eyes, closed since the beginning of the song, finally opened once he placed his hands in his lap. He could see her face, but all he did was smile at her—genuinely smile.
"I call it "Mother's Love"."
That was all she needed for that moment. She was not used to it, but a stream of tears flowed down her eyes. Tamaki stood up, opening his arms to her, which somehow her body accepted. She wrapped her arms around him, resting her head on his chest. The strong, laid-back swimmer was crying.
--
Tamaki sat in his bed, glancing at the latest Teen Swimmers. He did not know why, but he wanted to look for something. His eyes brushed against the pages, identifying every line and every sentence. Of course many people cried once they heard him play, but the way Nami cried was not something usual. It felt held back.
The article only talked about her background, something useful but already known. His intention was something deeper. This article was getting him nowhere; what he needed were people who knew her.
Tamaki picked up his phone, calling the very girl he knew might have answers.
"Haruhi-chan, how are you tonight?"
She stifled a small sigh before replying. "Tamaki-san, it is pretty late."
"Oh, really! I haven't seen the clock in hours. It's just I had a question…about Nami-chan."
He listened to his phone, hearing the silence until a small rustling was heard. Sheets or a pillow, maybe. "What is it?"
"Has she talked to you about why she cried today or what's going on with her life?"
"Not really, I'm still getting to know her." She finished, but remembered she did not finish one of his other questions. "No, she did not say anything."
"I just feel so terrible! I hope she doesn't think my music was bad or anything."
He could hear a small scoff from Haruhi. "Sir, I don't think that's the problem. Like you said earlier, it might have triggered something deeper. You could ask her when you see her tomorrow."
She always had the right ideas. "Thank you, Haruhi-san. What would I do without you?"
"You probably pester someone else with your questions."
He gave a small pout and began to whine through the phone. "You are always so mean to me!"
Somehow, from somewhere, he could have vision it, but he swore he heard a chuckle from the other line with a relieved sigh.
"Good night, Tamaki-san."
"Night, Haruhi-chan."
He placed his phone off, staring at it for a moment. If he could always have a thought or question, he would hope Haruhi would always be there to comment. Of course, Kyouya would certainly have the answer, most likely, but to hear the brunette's slight androgynous voice carry within the phone; he would be grateful.
--
Nami sat in her seat, looking into her tea. She had been in her session for only five minutes and she could not look at Tamaki. She crossed her legs, noticing the sounds of Tamaki reaching for things on the table, but she would not budge.
"Was my playing that terrible?" Nami finally felt her head rise, staring intently at the blonde junior.
"Uh, it's not that."
Tamaki took his own tea, making a deal of breathing for relief to her response. She smiled, sensing his attempt to make her feel comfortable and positive. She mentally thanked him for it.
"Why did you cry like that?" Nami looked up into his deep blue eyes, then carried her gaze to the nearest window.
She took a small breath, feeling he would not budge from the question. She had to be honest.
"You might appear happy, but you're not. You're really sad."
He kept his smile on his face, but it altered, just a little. He was the one to point things out for people. He was the one to display the loneliness in the twins, the determination and frustration in Kyouya with his work, and the self- identity problem of Hunny. Now she was the identifier, and simply, he was not use to it. Tamaki took his hand and rubbed his hair back, think of what to say.
"Why do you say that?"
"Oh, seriously, Sempai, the music gave it away." She sipped her tea, wishing there was less honey. "It was beautiful, but the name and the notes…."
"It is only music, Nami-chan." He tried to appease her, pushing back her thoughts, but she was not giving up.
"Tell me about your life. Who are your mother and father?"
Tamaki opened his mouth, shutting it as quickly. He gave a short laugh, trying to hide his uncomfortable feeling, but she could see it. She felt it herself.
Nami reached out to him with her hand, gazing for his attention for a moment.
"My mom is always on the road, and I don't know who my father was." She cringed and closed her eyes, cursing for the informality of her emotions, but continued. "Swimming is my life because I want to get away from being sad, lonely, and depressed. Your music is the same."
Tamaki looked at her, wondering if he should stop her or just let her continue. He gripped her hand, feeling a connection growing instantly.
"Did your mother marry your father?"
"No. You can say I'm a bastard child." She hated that word, but she heard it at every school she went.
"Me, too." He gripped her hand, smiling for his and her sake. "That's why I'm happy. Because I have friends and just people who care for me and not how I was created."
She smiled, wiping any tear that was on her cheek. It was funny, she thought. The guy yesterday was an idiot, a jester, and naïve blonde. But in the end, he was a really good guy. He has been through a lot, but he kept going. Of course he was sad, and sometimes his music presented it, but he knew he had people who cared.
Nami sat back, placing the tea back on the table. "No wonder you were last. I never cried like that."
"You really did not cry. It was like a tough chick shed of tears." His smile grew, letting go of his hand.
"Heh, let's just say the last time I cried was when some kid kicked dirt in my face." Somehow, Tamaki could not identify the time link to the comment. He did not know if it meant she cried when she was younger or just the other day. Hey, kids are mean nowadays.
--
After their session, the two walked over to the host members; it seemed that the two kept taking long after all the other girls were gone. Who would have known that the raven hair girl could enjoy the ranting of a delusional idiot?
"How was the session, Nami-chan?" asked Haruhi placing silverwares away.
"It was good. I actually did not expect to have fun with Blondie here." Tamaki smiled widely, grabbing onto Nami's arm, only to be pushed off by the swimmer.
Hunny hopped over to the tall girl, hugging tightly to his Usa-chan. "Nami-chan, so are you afraid of men still!"
" We shall see!" With that, Tamaki pulled Nami close to him, brushing his hand unto her face. Nami froze watching his blue eyes pierce her emerald. He lowered his face to her, amazing everyone, but as soon as the prince swooped her up, she forcefully punched him in the arm.
"Ouch! Nami-chan." He pulled her name in a whining tone; touching the part of his arm where he could feel a bruise forming.
Nami looked at him with indifferent eyes, shrugging her arms to his tone. "Hey, you were getting too friendly."
He pouted softly, making the rest of the host members either chuckle or smirk to his pain. Well, he should know that not every girl goes gaga over his affection.
Still, Nami looked at him, finding him utterly comical for continuing his pout. He really was a nice guy, so she should at least thank him for his treatment. She turned to him, kissing his cheek then pulling away instantly.
"I guess the fear is gone." Everyone just stared at her, especially Tamaki and Haruhi.
"What?" She shrugged but they just either continued to stare at her or shook their head. Hell, she hit him with a bag! She had to make it up somehow!
TBC
A/N: Yay, the session is over! But what will Nami do? This is only the beginning.
Thank you very much for the reviews and reading! I am so thrilled to read the comments, so please continue reading and continue to review.
