Me: HELLO EVERYONE! :D

Hikaru and Kaoru: *grumbles* What's with the overly enthusiastic welcome? We're not very happy with you.

Me: *gasps* NO! NO WAY! WHY? OH, WHAT HAS THIS WORLD COME TO? YOU ARE NOT HAPPY WITH ME? MY LIFE IS OVER! OVER, I TELL YOU! OH, CRUEL, CRUEL WORLD... Actually, I really don't care if you're happy with me or not, so...

Hikaru and Kaoru: In case you haven't noticed, our love lives aren't going too well. AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! *points at me*

Tamaki: *beaming stupidly* My love life is going very well, thank you very much. Why, Haruhi and I are very much in love and... *goes on and on*

Hikaru: Please shut up, Milord.

Kaoru: You're stupid, Tono.

Honey: That's not nice, Hika-chan and Kao-chan. :(

Mori: ...

Me: Shut up, everyone. Let me talk. I want to thank all my reviewers cuz they're awesome! *says in motherly voice* Now, now, children. Remember, okaa-san will not be happy if she gets very little reviews. Why, she may even stop writing and throw herself onto a cactus in despair. We wouldn't want that, would we? So, my little bunnies, review lots and lots and make okaa-san happy... Yeah. Okay. I'll stop being creepy now.

Hikaru: What are you talking about? You can't stop.

Kaoru: You're always creepy.

Kyouya: *scribbling in notebook* Hmmmm... Always...creepy...

Me: AHHHH! DON'T WRITE THAT DOWN! I am NOT creepy, btw. *laughs nervously* Anyway, ideas for the next chapters and criticism are always welcome! Please. Seriously. Lots of ideas are needed. I would really appreciate it.

Honey: I'll bake you into a cake and eat you if you don't review. O.o

Me: YEAH. And I'M the creepy one... Oh yeah. Onedream 2Dream, the date is around the beginning of the school year (in the US). The first chapter was on their first day of school in Boston Prep (LOL, I didn't know there was actually a Boston Prep, I just made it up XD), which was in September. And then it moved on a few weeks throughout the story, so I guess this chapter would be around the beginning of October? And I'm really sorry about the long paragraphs. I just realized that it's really hard to read when I looked at your comment and reread my story. Gomen ne. I'm typing this at 11:30 at night, so I don't have time to change that right now, but I'll try my hardest to change it before next Friday. Thanks! :D

Tamaki: OHSHC does not belong to MMEF. Well, enjoy, my lovely subjects!

Chapter 13

Maiko stared blankly at the wall as she heard the nurse talking to Kyouya and Tamaki. What had Kaoru meant? He hoped Justin got what he wanted? Justin wanted something? Maiko sighed, running a hand through her hair. She hadn't meant to explode at Kaoru, but he just attacked Justin out of the blue. She turned to the door as Hikaru, Izumi, Haruhi, Honey, Aiko, Kyouya, Emi, Mori, and Ayu walked in. Kaoru wasn't there. She frowned.

"So…he got hurt. By falling off the stairs in the back of your school and falling into an apple tree," the nurse said, looking disbelievingly at Tamaki and Kyouya.

Tamaki stepped closer to the nurse and nodded.

"That's what I said," Tamaki said seriously.

"Um, besides the fact that it's virtually impossible to fall from the bottom of a staircase into the top of a tree, my little brother goes to Ouran on scholarship. I visited once. There are no stairs in the back of the school," the nurse said, hesitating slightly.

Tamaki looked alarmed.

"N-no. What I meant was…" he trailed off, looking confused.

Kyouya smirked, and stepped behind the nurse, slyly placing his arms in front of her and standing so close her that she was almost pressed against him. He took her clipboard and bent his head down towards hers, looking as if he was about to kiss her.

"Why don't I take your clipboard while you go rest, okay?" Kyouya smiled, a half-smirk that he knew pulled all the girls under his charm.

The nurse blushed and backed out, stammering something about having some coffee.

"And…that's another thing taken care of," Kyouya said carelessly, scribbling stuff down on the clipboard.

"Wow," Emi said dryly. "And look-ee at Mr. Casanova here."

"And look-ee at Ms. Jealous here," Izumi sang.

Emi glared at Izumi.

"RAWR," Emi said.

"I know. It's okay, baby, I love you too," Izumi said with a wink.

"AGH! That's not what I meant! I don't speak Dinosaur!" Emi yelled.

"Be quiet, will you?" Maiko snapped, glaring at her twin and Emi.

Izumi shot a glance at Emi. Maiko must be really stressed out, Izumi thought. Usually Maiko was the more agreeable one.

The room was tense with silence. Hikaru was the first to break it.

"I'm gonna go and check on my brother," Hikaru said. "Sorry, but personally, I'm a bit more fond of Kaoru than I am of…him."

Hikaru gestured towards the bandage-covered, dozing figure resting on a hospital bed next to them.

"Kaoru wouldn't have attacked Justin without a reason," Hikaru said as he disappeared out the doorway.

Maiko glanced at the doorway and then glanced away. Hikaru was right. Kaoru had to have had a reason, but what the h*ll was his problem with Justin? She sighed. Justin had been nothing but gentlemanly to her, and nothing but nice to her friends. Whatever Kaoru's problem was, surely he was mistaken. She closed her eyes and rested her head on the side of Justin's hospital bed. Maybe she could just rest for a few minutes while her friends were still silent.

Kaoru stepped out of the Mercedes-Benz as the driver opened the door.

"Thanks for taking me home from the school," he said, trying to keep his voice from showing signs of anger.

The driver nodded silently. Kaoru swung his bag over his shoulder and walked into his family's mansion. He shut the door behind him and made his way up the stairs, doing his best to avoid the maids and waving them off with a brief "Hey." He walked into his room and sat down on his bed, fuming. No way was he going to talk to Maiko again. Much less rescue her from her lecherous boyfriend. Let her do what she wanted. After all, she was always right, he thought sarcastically. Suddenly, a loud bang alerted him to Hikaru's entrance. Kaoru looked up.

"Hey. What are you doing?" Hikaru asked, sitting down next to his twin.

"Nothing," Kaoru said stonily.

"Look, seriously? I'm your twin. You can't hide anything from me," Hikaru said. "I know you're upset that Maiko's dating Justin. I know you like M-"

Kaoru jumped up.

"WHO THE HECK SAID I LIKED MAIKO?" Kaoru roared angrily. "I DON'T CARE ABOUT HER AT ALL! I DON'T CARE IF SHE LIKES SOME F***ING B*STARD! SHE CAN DO WHATEVER SH-"

His twin pushed him back down.

"It's kinda obvious you like her, okay?" Hikaru sighed.

"Fine, okay? I like her. A lot," Kaoru spat. "But it doesn't matter."

"And Justin's a good guy. Don't hit him. He might be kinda cocky, but, aren't we all?" Hikaru said.

"Justin is not a-" Kaoru began to protest angrily, but stopped. "Never mind."

Hikaru probably wouldn't believe him anyway. Kaoru looked dejectedly up at his twin, who had a mischievous glint in one eye.

"As I said, Justin's a good guy. But that doesn't mean you can't steal her from him. After all, we're Hitachiins, right?" Hikaru smirked.

Kaoru looked up, surprised.

"Which brings me to the topic of Izumi," Hikaru continued. "I really want to get with her."

"I could tell," Kaoru said dryly.

"Just as a toy. Just as a game," Hikaru said quickly. "But she might shoot me down."

Kaoru rolled his eyes.

"Really? Hikaru Hitachiin? Afraid? Have you seen the way she looks at you and blushes every time you get close to her?"Kaoru said. "That's called love, my dear twin."

Hikaru looked happy.

"Really?" he said. "Well, then, I have a chance. I-I mean, at winning this game. It was a bet against…against, er, this guy named J-Jerry…? You really should try to get Maiko. I know you can do it. We're pretty hot."

Hikaru shot his brother a cocky smirk.

"Fine. Let's go," Kaoru sighed, following his brother out the door.

Hikaru walked into the hospital's cafeteria and immediately spotted Izumi. She was sitting, surrounded by the rest of the group, who were all eating. Honey and Aiko were scarfing down brownies, Mori and Ayu were watching the two little ones, Emi was standing and talking animatedly to the cashier, Kyouya was scribbling stuff down in his notebook, Izumi was eating a sandwich while Tamaki watched her with wide eyes, occasionally exclaiming about the wonders of commoner eating habits, and Haruhi was trying to tell Tamaki to respect people's personal space.

"Hey, Izumi. Can I talk to you?" he asked with a grin.

"S-sure," she answered, blushing.

She got up from the table and followed him to another table, ignoring the snickers from her friends. Hikaru gestured for her to sit across from him.

"Look, Izumi, remember when I kissed you?"

"Um, yeah," Izumi said, looking down at her toes. "That was, er, probably a mistake."

"No," Hikaru said firmly. "It wasn't. I kissed you because I really like you, Izumi."

Izumi's head jerked up as her gaze drifted from her shoes to Hikaru's face.

"Wait. What?" she said, her face turning scarlet.

Hikaru reached across the table for her hand, and enclosed it in his bigger one.

"I really like you. Izumi, will you go out with me?" he asked, leaning across the table.

"You...like…me?" Izumi asked. "Why?"

"What kind of question is that?" Hikaru laughed, and then turned serious. He looked her in the eye. "Because everything you do is super f***ing cute."

"You are such a charmer," Izumi said, rolling her eyes.

Hikaru felt something close around his hand and looked down. Izumi's slender fingers had wrapped around his own. He grinned at her. Relief filled his chest.

"I'll take that as a yes," he said, tilting his head towards hers.

Maiko yawned and lifted her head up from her arms. The room was silent. Where the heck was everyone? The only person in the room with her was her sleeping boyfriend. Whatever. Everyone else probably went down to the hospital's cafeteria or something. She pulled the cotton blanket off Justin's face and leaned forward to check if he was sleeping.

"Hey. You awake?" she whispered gently.

Justin gave a grunt and turned his face towards hers.

"Huh? Oh. Yeah," he mumbled sleepily.

His eyes opened wider as he sat up and yawned.

"Hey. You shouldn't do that," Maiko said, worried. "You could hurt yourself even more."

"Nah. It's fine. He kinda broke my nose, but my body's okay. Just a little sore," Justin said with a small grin. "But maybe you could help make it feel better?"

Maiko stood up.

"Okay. What should I get you? There's probably soup in the cafeteria, and maybe you want a cold cloth, or something?" Maiko said, eager to help.

"I don't need a cold cloth. I've already taken enough cold showers," Justin said, leaning towards her.

Maiko backed away, stumbling slightly over her own feet.

"W-what?" she asked. "Wait…stop!"

She screamed hoarsely as Justin grabbed at her shirt. He got up from the bed, encasing her wrist in a vice-like grip.

"No! Stop it!" she shrieked, trying to kick him away. "STOP IT! STOP!"

He pulled her shirt over her head and pinned her down on the hospital bed.

"STOP IT! LET GO OF ME! STOP!" she screamed. "NO! STOP IT!"

Hikaru and Izumi's lips had just barely met when a faint scream sliced through the air. Izumi broke the kiss and jumped up from her seat.

"Oh my God. That's Maiko. I'd know that scream anywhere," Izumi gasped.

She grabbed his hand and ran with him towards their friends.

"That was Maiko," Izumi cried. "Hurry up!"

She dashed up the stairs with Hikaru, everyone else racing after them.

Maiko struggled and screamed against Justin. Suddenly, the door flew open. A wide-eyed Kaoru stood in the doorway, clutching a bouquet of purple lilacs in one hand. Kaoru stared at the scene in front of him and at Maiko's fearful face, and fury took over. The bouquet went flying as Kaoru tackled Justin to the ground.

"WHAT THE F***, YOU B*STARD!" Kaoru yelled, his eyes narrowed in fiery anger as he pummeled Justin.

Justin's fist sliced through the air and crushed Kaoru's left eye.

"SH*T!" Kaoru yelled, swiping at his quickly bruising eye as he kicked Justin in the side and pushed him into a wall.

By now, everyone else had burst in through the door. As the guys ran to Kaoru's aid, the girls hurried over to Maiko, who was still lying across the bed, looking terror-stricken. Izumi was the first to reach her.

"Oh my God! Maiko! Maiko, are you okay?" Izumi cried.

Maiko nodded weakly, and her twin helped her sit up. A single tear fell down Maiko's cheek.

"Kaoru…Kaoru," Maiko said, her voice raw from the screaming. "Kaoru was right."

Izumi wrapped an arm around her twin's shoulder. Aiko, Ayu, Emi, and Haruhi enveloped them in a hug.

"It'll be okay," Emi said.

"Look, he's fighting for you," Aiko said, pointing at Kaoru, who had punched Justin unconscious, with the help of Hikaru, Mori, Honey, and Tamaki, as Kyouya called a nurse.

Maiko stared at Kaoru, who had a black eye, a bloody nose, and possibly a few sprained body parts.

"It's my fault," she whispered.

"Hey, Mai, it's not your fault," Ayu said. "Now, we really need to get you a shirt."

"Here," Haruhi said, taking off her red hoodie. "You can use this."

Maiko smiled her thanks as she slipped the hoodie on and watched the nurses and night guards rush in and cart Justin and the boys away.

"Justin will probably be in the hospital for a while," Ayu noted.

"GOOD," Izumi said. "C'mon. Let's go join the boys."

The girls all helped Maiko up and they walked out of the room.

Maiko stood beside where Kaoru was resting.

"Kaoru. I'm really sorry. I really am," Maiko said.

Kaoru turned away from her and glared at the other side of the hospital room. Ugh. Like that was any better. He had a direct view of his twin and Izumi sucking face. Anything was better than that. Kaoru turned back to Maiko. She was shaking and her face was white with remorse. Kaoru could feel his resolve crumbling.

"Ugh. Whatever," he said gruffly. "Do you really expect me to be mad at you when you've almost been raped?"

He could see the relief fill her face. He rolled his eyes. Why the heck did she care that much about his forgiveness anyway? Shouldn't she be getting over her true love Justin, he thought sarcastically. Suddenly, he felt arms wrap around him.

"Thank you," Maiko practically cried as she hugged the life out of him.

"OW! OW! Careful!" Kaoru cried as one IV needle almost got pulled out of his arm.

Maiko jumped back.

"Sorry!" she apologized.

"It's fine," he grumbled.

And it really was. In fact, inside, he felt the happiest he had been in a long time. He knew he probably had no chance with her, for a while. At least while she was still getting over her near-rapage. And for now, a hug was enough.

REVIEW! :O *grins evilly* Or I just might take Honey up on his offer to turn you guys into cake... BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! *goes on evil cake rampage*

Lol. Okay. Ideas and criticism encouraged! :D