I Didn't Wish for This!
Chapter Ten: Kiss and Make Up
"You look out of it."
Nanako blinked. Haruhi picked up a small portion of rice and shoveled it into her mouth.
"Do I really?" Nanako asked, bringing a hand up to her face in shock.
"Well, I can tell," Haruhi stated.
Nanako pursed her lips. She didn't realize how easily her feelings showed on her face.
"My mother came home for several hours yesterday, and instead of doing something productive, she decided it was best to lecture me about my recent choices, my outfit, and how irresponsible my father is." Nanako frowned as she recalled her mother's strict face.
That woman was the last thing Nanako wanted at the end of the day.
Haruhi watched her friend's eyes disconnect with the conversation. She was out of it again, and Haruhi thought it was better to let her think it out.
Nanako did well at calming herself down…most of the time.
When club activities rolled around, Nanako seemed better, but she was definitely still out of it. Haruhi decided that, if she wasn't back to normal at the end of the post-club meeting, she would have to talk to her again.
What's her deal anyway? Does she have to be so inconsiderate? Nanako thought as she swept the floor near one of the windows.
Hikaru and Kaoru were playing the 'Which One is Hikaru' game.
She came home for, what, three hours? And the entire time she lectured me on how to dress?
Nanako turned her dark eyes towards the window and squinted.
There's more to life than showing up flawless to school, mother.
The twins were now explaining the merit of having two twins in the club with homosexual tendencies.
Why does my appearance matter so much? Why doesn't she want me making decisions on my own? I am a grown woman!
Nanako rocked her head from side to side in disagreement with her thoughts.
I mean… I guess I'm only, what, sixteen? That's not really an adult.
Tamaki was currently furious at the thought of Haruhi posing nude for the website.
I guess if I'm not an adult then she does have some right to say what I do…Then again, father is letting me do whatever I want and supports me the entire time! So why should I listen to her?
Nanako straightened her back and furrowed her brows at her semi-visible reflection in the glass.
I am under the jurisdiction of my father because he's the only one who seems to care. I can't see why she dislikes him so much. Nanako clenched her fist. I don't understand why she complained to me about him! I like him as a father. He's probably the best father I've ever met—even though he can be a little airheaded…and silly… and mentally deranged, but that doesn't matter!
Haruhi was told that she was a toy.
He's a nice guy, and if they got divorced, I would be completely happy with getting a stepmother who is nice, loving, and actually cares about other people's feelings… I wonder if they'll ever get divorced…?
Tamaki was now explaining how he was cursed at the end of the previous year because of Belzenef the puppet.
I wonder if I can feign surprise if it happens. Nanako gasped. "A divorce? That's insane!"
Nanako shook her head and tried again.
"You're getting divorced? But what about the love you two have shared over the years?"
She tried several more times.
I don't think I'd be shocked if mother filed for divorce… I wouldn't put it past her.
The twins asked to come over to Haruhi's place on the next day off, to which she denied.
Mother is so… conceited. She believes her way is the only way and everyone else is below her… I wonder if she acts like that when she's working?
Nanako brushed the debris into the dustpan and took the remnants to the back. When she returned, the twins were going head to head in a heated argument.
"Who are you calling an idiot? You're the one who sucks at math! And no amount of help from Morikawa is going to help your grade!" Hikaru argued, staring daggers into his brother's eyes.
"At least she's nice enough to help me out when I don't understand something. I don't see you asking for help in foreign language! That's probably why you're failing!" Kaoru retaliated, baring his teeth in anger.
"The way you grind your teeth is deafening."
"I don't toss and turn so much that I fall out of bed."
"Sex pixie!"
"Sicko!"
"Your mamma wears too much makeup!" The two yelled in unison and then broke apart; Kaoru began to walk towards the back room while Hikaru headed for the door. "That's it. We're through!"
Their argument had climaxed, and their friendship was over.
Nanako stood and watched as Kaoru stormed by her and slammed the backroom door behind him.
It was silent, but then the girls began whispering about the situation. Tamaki politely sent the girls home for the day.
Nanako found herself wandering to the back to talk to Kaoru. She closed the door behind her and made her way over to the table where Kaoru sat spinning his phone on its corner.
"Are you alright?" She asked, her dress fluffing up around her legs for a second before she brushed it down.
Kaoru debated telling her the plan but decided against it.
"I don't know. I feel bad for saying those things to Hikaru, but I also don't feel bad because he started it. All I did was laugh because Haruhi's reasoning was funny."
"Well," Nanako began as she stared at his spinning phone for a few seconds too long, "I'm not sure why something so little started such a huge fight… But I don't think you should let Haruhi's comment come between you two… I'm sure she didn't mean for it to hurt feelings." Nanako didn't exactly know what had been said, but whatever happened was obviously pretty bad, and she didn't think Haruhi would have any ill intent behind anything she said—unless she was really angry.
Kaoru stared at Nanako. "I see your point, but even if I apologized, Hikaru isn't going to accept it right away because he's so stubborn… and I'm not ready to forgive him just yet." He stood up and slipped his phone into his pocket. "Thanks for coming to talk to me. It means a lot…really."
He kissed her forehead and left the room.
Nanako gathered her things quietly.
What just happened?
/-\/-\/-\/-\
"Nanako-sama, you have a guest waiting for you."
Nanako had a toothbrush in her mouth and her uniform half on when the head maid had come in.
"Oh, okay, I will be down in a few minutes."
The maid bowed and left without a sound.
Who's here this early in the morning?
After brushing through her hair, rinsing her mouth out, and dressing completely, Nanako entered the foyer and gasped when she realized who was waiting.
"What did you do to your hair?!" She rushed up and immediately reached for Kaoru's cotton candy blue hair.
"I dyed it so people can tell Hikaru and me apart." He clarified with a smile.
"Okay, that makes sense…but what are you doing here?" She asked, pointing to the ground.
"I figured we could go to school together."
Nanako wrinkled her brows.
This is surreal. I must still be dreaming.
"Okay, I'd like to wake up now." She laughed and waited…and waited… and waited…
"This isn't a dream…" Kaoru laughed awkwardly.
Nanako blushed in embarrassment. "Oh."
"Yeah…"
The two shifted uncomfortably. "We should probably…"
"Yeah."
Kaoru took her hand and pulled her to his limo.
The car ride was a little awkward at first, but once they began to warm up to each other, they arrived laughing and joking.
As they neared their classroom their conversation turned serious because they both knew that they would be seeing Hikaru, and after the fight… anything was possible.
They definitely weren't speaking to each other, Nanako knew that much, but she wasn't expecting them to throw everything in sight at each other right before homeroom…. And again at lunch…
Kaoru had decided that he wanted to avoid Hikaru by not going home until later that night, so he informed Nanako that they would be hanging out and working on math at her place until he felt it was safe enough to return home.
Neither of the twins showed for the club meeting.
"It's weird for Hika-chan and Kao-chan to be fighting like this. It's never happened before." Honey moved the arms of his bunny, Usa-chan, while he spoke with a solemn look on his face.
"They've never fought before?"
Honey explained that, even though he's known them since preschool, he never saw the two separated from each other, let alone be in a fight.
Tamaki noted that, since he had known them in middle school, they had been a little odd, and used to be even more bizarre then.
"It seemed like they kept everyone at a distance except each other…When you stop and think about it, maybe this fight is a good thing for them. Maybe it means the world the twins live in is getting a little bigger. We should just leave them alone and let them work it out."
I guess Kaoru has talked to me more… and Hikaru to Haruhi… Hopefully, things will be resolved when the tensions between them simmer down.
Nanako met Kaoru outside and they rode to her home peacefully. She spent a good portion of the first hour tutoring Kaoru in math while she did her own homework, and when they were both finished, Nanako decided to make dinner for the two of them, despite the head maid and chef's words.
"What is your favorite simple food?" She asked, tying an apron around herself. Kaoru leaned on the counter and thought.
"Simple, huh?" He hummed as he observed her tie her hair into a messy bun. "How about pancakes?"
She nodded. "Can do. I am the pancake baking master."
"Oh, are you really?" Kaoru asked, not believing her bluff for a second.
"Really really," She looked at him seriously. "Do you not believe me?" She asked as she dropped a container of pancake mix on the counter.
"I believe you can lie pretty well." He retorted, handing her a bowl and a whisk.
"Well, the master of pancakes takes offense to your completely reasonable accusations." She laughed. "I'm not a master, but I do know how to make a pretty good batch of pancakes."
They spent a good half hour goofing around and occasionally throwing and wiping flower on each other before eating their meal. They had to clean up their mess afterward, but it was fun while it lasted.
The next hour was spent walking around outside and chatting while the sun began to go down. Nanako vented about her mother and Kaoru vented about Hikaru, although not as extensively as the former did. They talked about likes and dislikes, what they liked about school, how many names they could rattle off for customers, and they also talked about where they wanted to go if they chose to travel.
Surprisingly, they had a good portion of things in common.
After the sun set, they found themselves out on the terrace down the hall from her room and staring up at the night sky.
"Today was fun," Nanako sighed and scooped a spoonful of strawberry ice cream into her mouth. "I really enjoyed talking to you for so long."
Kaoru agreed. "I usually don't get to talk to other people for this long because I'm always with Hikaru. It's…nice." Maybe it was the fact that he seemed interested in her rather than everyone else, but he liked spending time with her, especially when he couldn't spend time with Hikaru.
"It's good to know that there are a good handful of people in the world…that I want to talk to, that is." They laughed together.
"Are you…going to apologize to Hikaru soon? I think this fight has been going on long enough…"
Kaoru was silent. He didn't know how long their 'fight' would go on for.
"Soon."
"That's good. I hope you guys can make up and go back to how close you used to be." Nanako crossed her legs.
"I hope so, too." He watched her eat the last bite of her ice cream.
"I can feel you staring at me…" She murmured, looking at him from the corner of her eye.
"I know."
"What are you thinking about?" She asked, turning her head towards him.
He knew what he was thinking, he just didn't know if she would accept it. He heard a voice in the back of his head say, "Why not?"
So, he did what he was thinking.
And he kissed her.
/-\/-\/-\/-\
The club didn't open the following day, and the members found themselves staring at another casualty of war.
"Don't you guys think you should give up all this fighting? It's driving me insane." Tamaki held his head. Of all the witnesses, he was probably the most visibly frustrated with the relentless fighting.
"What did you say? It's driving you insane? How do you think I feel right now?" Hikaru, the more frustrated of the twins, stared coldly at Tamaki. "Every time I look in the mirror I see his face! I'm sick and tired of being mistaken for you, Kaoru. The truth is I hate your guts!"
"You took the words right out of my mouth." Kaoru reached into his blazer. "Because I hate you so much, I bought this: Belzenef, the curse doll!" He proceeded to pull the wooden doll out of his jacket and showed it to his brother.
Tamaki jumped in fear.
"I'm going to complete the curse, Hikaru. I'm going to write your name on his back."
"Oh, that's not good," Nanako mumbled, raising her hand to her mouth. She didn't expect this to happen, especially something so malicious.
Curses shouldn't be taken lightly.
"From this day forward, you're going to be met with misfortune and sorrow!"
Haruhi rushed forward before Kaoru could complete the curse and slammed her fist on both of their heads.
"What do you think you're doing? You don't bring something like this into a petty fight! Both of you are at fault here, but what's sad is that you've brought everyone else around you into your big mess. Now, apologize to each other! If you don't apologize right now, I'm never going to let you come over to my house, have I made myself clear?"
And this is Haruhi when she's angry… I'll remember never to get on her bad side. Nanako thought.
The twins stood up together. "So, what you're saying is that if we make up we can come over to your place?"
They hooked arms, and suddenly, Nanako knew what was going on.
"We've been had." She sighed.
It turns out they had been faking it the entire time, just following a script they had come up with. In retrospect, all the fighting was a little obnoxious, yet she was fooled the entire time.
She wondered if the script was still followed when it was just Kaoru and her.
The following day during club activities, Nanako watched from afar as they played the 'Which One is Hikaru' game with their patrons. Their hair colors were still fluorescent, so it was easy to tell them apart…
Or so she thought.
Haruhi said they swapped hair colors for the day, something Nanako didn't pick up on.
Nanako looked at Haruhi as she walked away and then glanced at Kaoru, remembering something he had mentioned in their heart to heart before the sun set.
She smiled.
I'm glad there's someone there for both of you.
"Nanako-san!"
Nanako turned with a bright smile on her face and walked over to a group of giggling girls.
"What can I do for you, ladies?"
Hello and welcome back!
I hope you enjoyed this chapter! From fighting to bonding to a kiss?! What a crazy episode!
I'm surprised I finished this episode in one chapter, to be honest. It's probably because everything happened so close together instead of so spread out, but I'm ready for the next chapter!
And I just remembered it's the little boy... What am I going to do...?
In any case, I want to further explain Haruhi being the only one to enter the twins' world:
Nanako has only started becoming a part of Kaoru's world, not Hikaru's; Haruhi, on the other hand, has entered their combined world, therefore making her the only person who has come into the twins' world and not just one of their worlds.
I hope you're okay with the one kiss. I know it seemed like they think nothing of it, but that's how I feel Nanako would handle it. She's not the type of person to dwell on a kiss for days and days just to have a reason to avoid someone. As far as she thinks, it happened and she's happy with it. It's not a huge deal.
Well, I'm off! I hope you're having a wonderful day! Thank you for your continued support. I appreciate you reading this story and having some fun with it! I will see you guys in the next installment!