**Disclaimer: I do not own Ouran Highschool Host Club**
Chapter Twelve: A Midsummer's Night Ball
Kazue sat on the edge of the bed with a bored expression on his face as his mother obsessively tried to fix his hair. "Mom…" he complained, pushing up his glasses with his middle finger. "No matter how much you comb it, it's not going to stay down. You need to go finish getting ready." He tried to swat her hand away. "Mom!"
"Okay, okay…" she sighed, stepping back and examining him as he fixed his glasses once more. Perhaps she needed advice on how to style Kazue's hair, since it seemed to refuse to stay down. Slightly disheveled hair aside, she was content with his outfit. He wore a pair of neat, tan slacks. Tucked into them neatly was a crisp, new, white button up shirt with a soft green tie, all underneath a grey sweater. She smiled softly, kneeling in front of him and brushing the front of his sweater to straighten it up. "Why do you have to get so big, so fast?" she asked, putting her hand on his cheek gently. "You're not my little boy anymore, I don't like it. Stop growing."
"Mom," he complained, pushing her hand away again, but he couldn't hide the hint of the smile that tugged at the corner of his lips. "I'm going to read my book while you finish getting ready." He hopped off the bed, going over to his bed and pulling out the book.
Haruhi chuckled and went back into the bathroom to finish getting ready. She had done her makeup - simple and natural to bring out her good features - and her hair was pulled up in a loose knot of large curls, with strands of curls hanging down and a few strands around her face, framing her face along with her bangs.
Turning around, she faced the dress that was hanging behind her: a beautiful, lavender ball gown. Kaoru had dropped it off that afternoon insisting that she wear it for the ball tonight. She tried to refuse, but, as always, she was unsuccessful.
After carefully putting it on, so as to not mess up her hair or makeup, she turned around and examined herself in the full length mirror. The dress had a straight neckline and three small, delicate, silver chains over and down the shoulders as a replacement for straps. The soft material hugged her form gently down to her hips before falling loosely around her legs. The hem of the dress had a unique and modern cut, coming up to just above her left knee and slanting down along the front and coming down to the mid calf of her right leg. The edge of the hem was sewn in an extra-silky, gentle frill that gave the material the illusion of petals blowing in the wind.
It really was stunning! Such beautifully made and with fine materials. Exactly what she would expect from the Hitachiin brand.
Going back over to the vanity, she put a dab of perfume on. As the smell filled her nose she paused, looking down at the old glass bottle. It had been a long time since she has worn it. The label read, in a fancy cursive lettering, "Baiser Rose Lilas". Tamaki had told her it meant Lilac Rose Kiss and it was a limited edition he had found at a little boutique he had gone to with his mother while visiting her. It has been a birthday present for her her last year at Ouran academy.
She hadn't really thought about the significance of where she had gotten it until the smell brought back the memories. She wondered if perhaps it wasn't a good idea to wear it? What would Tamaki think? She didn't want anyone to read too much into it. Then she shook her head. It had been ten years, she was being ridiculous. Why would he even make the connection. Even when she had worn it before it was rare because she knew how expensive it must have been, so she always saved it for the most important occasions. Which was why this was the first time she had worn it in the last ten years.
Gently setting the bottle back on the counter she went back out into the room, grabbing a pair of simple, silver, heeled sandles and sitting on the bed next to her son to put them on. Kazue looked up from his book, fixing his glasses and smiling a little. "You look really pretty, mom."
"Thanks." She smiled back at her son, reaching out gently and trying one last time to fix a few of his rebellious strands of hair. But once again to no avail.
"Are we going now?" He asked. He stood up when Haruhi nodded.
Taking a deep breath, Haruhi stood up as well. Tonight was the last event of the reunion, then her and Kazue would be heading home to pack and get ready to move back here. It was going to be so strange coming back to this life with her friends from Ouran. She was ready, but it was still terrifying.
Sakura sat uncomfortably, playing with one of the frills of the dark, sea foam colored dress she wore as Shizuko tugged and pinned her hair at the same time Julienne was applying makeup. Hana smiled softly, humming as she somehow managed to keep all four kids on the bed, patiently waiting for them to finish without ruining their nice clothes.
How did she get here again?...
… "Are you going to the ball tonight Sakura?" Suoh asked suddenly, after she had been introduced to him and the situation about how her and Hikaru had met had been explained to him.
Sakura blinked in surprise. "No...I'm supposed to be working as a server there but…" She looked down at her ankle. There was no way that she would be able to work with this injury.
"What?" Suoh asked, surprised. "You aren't going to be Hikaru's date?" With this the group's attention turned to Hikaru. Hikaru simply shrugged.
"I would be happy to go with her." He smiled another one of his charming smiles that made her blush. But she couldn't accept. She didn't belong here, she couldn't get further involved with these people, no matter how much Hikaru had made her feel at ease around them.
"No, thank you though." She said softly. "I have imposed enough on you all. Plus, I can't dance with this gimp ankle. Also," she looked down shyly, "I wouldn't have anything appropriate to wear to an event like that."
"I have many dresses you could chose from and borrow for the evening." Julienne piped in.
Sakura fidgeted uncomfortably. Hikaru put his hand gently on her back causing her to look up at him. "That's enough guys," he said flatly, before guiding her away from the group so they could talk alone. "Sorry, they are pushy sometimes."
"It's okay," she replied softly as they stopped in the shade of a large tree and Hikaru turned to face her, the breeze blowing gently. She tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear.
"Sakura," he said, causing her to look up at him once again. "You don't need to feel any obligations about going to the ball. But I meant what I said, I would be happy to go with you. I have enjoyed talking with you this afternoon. Though I'm sorry that you got hurt I am really glad that I had to opportunity to meet you."
Sakura blushed deeply, looking away and not sure what to say. He couldn't really be serious, could he? Did he still feel bad about her getting hurt? Did he think that this afternoon wasn't enough? She didn't know what other explanation there could be. Someone like him would never seriously be interested in her. "Hikaru, I…"
"I would be really happy if you decided to come though," he added before she could decline again.
Looking up into his amber eyes she felt her heart began to race. "A..Alright..." She found herself saying the words without thinking because she was still lost in his gaze. The corner of his lips pulled up and he smiled. …
… This was such a horrible idea...Why had she agreed to this?
Just then both Julienne and Shizuko stepped back. "All finished, Love," Julienne said with a smile. "You look so beautiful!"
Sakura didn't respond to the compliment as she stood up and looked at herself in the mirror. The dress came down only a few inches below her knees, the skirt of the dress full of layers of ruffles. The bodice itself was fitted simply with cap sleeves and a curved neckline. She wore a pair of simple ivory flats and her hair was curled in loose, silky curls, a few pieces pinned up with little jeweled clips that matched her dress. She smoothed her hands over her dress nervously.
Just then there was a knock at the door.
Honey peaked his head into the room. "Are you ladies ready?" he asked before smiling brightly and stepping into the room fully. "You all look so beautiful!" he exclaimed cheerfully.
"Me too, daddy?" Ruri asked, her big eyes staring up at Honey as she swished her hips in a twirling motion to make her pink dress spin out around her legs.
Then his five-year-old came up, standing in front of her younger sister to gain her father's attention and causing the three-year-old to pout. "What about me, daddy? Am I beautiful in my dress?" She spun around to show off her dress that matched her sisters, but was a soft yellow color.
Honey smiled, kneeling down on one knee in front of them and gently guiding both girls so that they were both equally in his sights. "You two princesses are going to be the most beautiful of all the other girls at the ball." He leaned over kissed the top of each of the girls' heads.
Sakura smiled softly as she watched him. It was really touching to see the way that he was with his children. The unfortunate experiences that she had had with people of wealth because of her job had left her with a less than good view on how they were. She had never seen them as family focused or kind-hearted people. But this group of friends was starting to make her see that perhaps not all rich people were as stuck up and unbearable as she had always believed.
"We should get going." Mori said as he stepped in behind Honey, going over to stand next to his wife and take his wiggly son from her so that she could fix her shawl and necklace that the child had managed to disarray.
"Yes!" Honey chimed in excitedly, picking up Ruri as he did and taking Mika's hand. "Kou-chan and Hika-chan are waiting outside for us."
Sakura suddenly felt very nervous again. Just thinking of Hikaru waiting outside for her, as her date, made her heart race. What was wrong with her? She was letting herself get too caught up in his charm. She knew better. This time in his world was temporary, soon she was going to go back to her shabby, little, dorm room where she had to share a bathroom with three other girls, eating cheap convenience store meals, and commuting in overcrowded subways to get to work and school. She still was a nobody, no matter how much Hikaru made her feel like she was someone special. She had to keep a clear head to see through the illusion.
She followed behind the rest of the group as they walked out of the room. She could see Kaoru and Hikaru leaning against the wall talking. When they heard the group they looked over. Kaoru immediately lit up seeing his wife and went over wrapping his arms around her and kissing her softly, not seeming to care that everyone else was watching them. "You are a goddess," he praised, gently stroking her cheek as he took her in once again.
Sakura once again felt very uncomfortable. She really was surrounded by beautiful women. She was plain as it was, but standing next to them she felt like she must be an eyesore. As Kaoru had stated, Julienne looked absolutely stunning, an obvious model. Every asset of her figure was accented by the long and slim, golden silk dress. Shizuko was in a black dress that fit snugly to her body, down to her hips with off-the-shoulder, long sleeves of lace. And Hana was wearing a sky blue, strapless ball gown with tulle for the skirt, and a pink petals sewn into the fabric to make it look as if it was cherry blossoms falling through the sky. How could she even try to feel pretty surrounded by so many beautiful people?
While lost in this train of thought she hadn't noticed Hikaru come up to her until he put his hand gently on her arm. She jumped, startled, as she looked up at him. He was wearing a black suit and a light blue tie. Everything on him looked extremely well-tailored and expensive. The whole train of thought that had been distracting her disappeared as she looked at him, blushing slightly. Why did she have to blush so easily around him, she wondered, this wasn't like her at all. Yet she just couldn't help it.
"You look lovely tonight," he said, in a voice so smooth it was like silk. His fingers ghosted down her arm so that his hand could find hers, and once he did he gently lifted her hand up to his mouth, pressing his lips to the back of her hand. Her blush depended. Who even does things like this anymore? What century am I in? More and more she was starting to think this was some long, strange dream. Perhaps she had hit her head when she fell the other day and now was in some coma-induced dream revolving around Hikaru because he was the last face that she had seen. That has to be it.
"Shall we go?" he asked, offering her his arm to escort her out. A very strange dream. She thought to herself again as she allowed him to guide her outside to the waiting limo.
Kyoya watched Tamaki pacing back and forth in front of him, unimpressed by his nervous ranting. "Tamaki," he said with a sigh as he pushed his glasses up gently and straightened his tie. "The ball has only just started. Just because Haruhi isn't here yet doesn't mean that she isn't coming or that she changed her mind."
"Are you sure though?" Tamaki asked, almost frantic. Kyoya sighed again. Tamaki was exasperating. "What if she thought about it more and decided that she liked living the way she was before, without me in her life?" He paused for a split second before quickly correcting himself. "Us in her life."
"Tamaki, calm down. You are overthinking everything. You were there this morning; she sent out her resume and is looking for jobs. She was looking at apartments and already started the application for Kazue to go to Ouran."
Tamaki began to go off on another ridiculous, hypothetical reason why Haruhi might leave again, but Kyoya stopped listening as he saw the subject of Tamaki's delusion walk in with her hand gently on her son's back. Kazue looked unsure as his eyes moved slowly along the scene before him, clearly not used to things like this.
Slowly fixing his glasses and nervously tugging at the bottom of his sweater, he looked up at his mother for reassurance before stepping forward with her into the crowd. Kyoya watched him with intense calculation. Statistically, it was unlikely but not impossible, and from the moment he had found out about Kazue being born he had wondered. It had taken all his self control to not go after Haruhi and demand that she find out who Kazue's father was, because he needed to know so badly.
Time had made it easier to accept standing back and letting the chips fall where they may, but the curiosity still got to him. If Kazue was his son, he wanted to know so that he could be a father to him. Even though the dynamics would be different, he still wanted to do the right thing and he wanted Kazue to know that he was important to his father.
These thoughts has been plaguing his mind so much as the reunion was approaching, and he knew Haruhi might decide to attend. Because of this he knew that he needed to talk to Sydney about it, she had a right to know what happened and be told the situation before coming face-to-face with it. He was hoping, through all this, that Haruhi would finally take the steps to find out who Kazue's father really was…
...Sydney was quietly sitting on the edge of his bed, watching him as he ran his fingers through his hair, facing her in a chair. He had just finished explaining everything that had happened between him and Haruhi nine years ago and the situation about Kazue whom he had never met. Looking up at her, he fixed his glasses with his heart racing, but he remained calm on the outside. Would he lose her because of this? Sydney was so understanding and accepting of things, but he knew that the things he had done were against her own faith and he wasn't sure if the burden of dating someone with a past like that would finally be too much for her. How could he expect her to accept his mistakes? He might have a son...a eight year old son.
But in his heart, all he wanted was for her to understand and tell him that she still loved him no matter what the truth about Kazue might be. But her silence wasn't giving him much hope of that.
He opened his mouth to speak again, explain and beg her to understand if it came to that, but he was stopped when he saw a soft smile on her face as she reached up, fixing a few strands of his hair that were still askew from him raking his fingers through it. "Don't stress, Kyoya," she said in a soft voice.
"I'm not stressed," he said evenly, though it was a lie. And she saw through it, like she always did. "I hope you understand that this doesn't change anything between us. And even if she does come I still may never find out. But…"
"If you do find out he is your son, you want to be his father," She finished. "And you should. Boys need their father in their life. I understand that. And Kyoya," she reached out, putting her hand on his chest. "I also don't think you are a bad person because this happened. For one thing, that was nine years ago. But also I came into this relationship knowing the type of relationships you had been in before; it doesn't scare me away."
He felt relief wash over him as he put his hand over hers which still rested on his chest. "Sydney...I love you." With his other hand he reached up, touching her cheek gently. How did he get so lucky to deserve someone as wonderful and understanding as her? One thing was for sure, he was never letting her go. Before now he had known he didn't want to lose her but now more than ever he knew that he couldn't live without her.
Leaning forward, he pressed his lips against hers in a soft, loving kiss, hoping that the overwhelming gratitude and love that he felt for her could be felt by his kiss…
...Grabbing Tamaki by the shoulders, he interrupted his rant, turning him around abruptly so that he was facing the opposite direction just as Haruhi and Kazue came into view. Tamaki's mood did a complete 180 and he held up both of his arms in excitement.
"Haruhi!" He exclaimed, quickly going over to embrace her, but she put her hand out to stop him.
"Please don't smother me here, Tamaki-senpai."
Tamaki pouted slightly, but obeyed like an obedient puppy, putting his hands behind his back and smiling like a fool. He was a fool, a fool who had always been in love with that charming woman who seemed to win the hearts of those around her without even trying.
