OMIGOSH *falls to ground* I am THE WORST person ever! Gomen nasai times a thousand! *shame* I am so sorry, everyone! Emi, Scree, WOW, I'm so sorry! School's really taking my time up -and my slacking, too T.T Got started on some stuff with friends, started making AMVs on YouTube... Yeah, anyway, I AM SO SORRY!

Buuuuut to make up for it, this chapter is UBER LONG. Like, the longest chapter I've written for any story EVER, I think. But I had a lot to cover, and I didn't want to break it up for the sake of continuity. So maybe it's a good thing, and maybe it's not... You let me know...

Emi, Scree, again, I am SO SORRY! I kept saying this was the big chapter (and it is), and then I disappeared for so long! *falls* Please forgive me!

*ahem* Anywhoo, I hope you like the chapter! Sorry again for the delay! Thank you so very much, all you readers and reviewers :) Read on!

-XIV. The Saltwater Room-

With the whole me-nearly-drowning, Kelsey-almost-dying mess over with, we decided to head back up to the house for dinner. And what house? Why, the Ohtori family's villa that was located only a short walk from the beach, that's what.

I could claim that I wasn't impressed by the house just because it was Kyoya's, but that would be like me saying I could recall thirty decimal places of pi from memory. ...I can't, if you're wondering. I bet Kyoya can, though... Anyway, moving on.

We were all shown to our rooms to change for dinner, and we flipped. We all got our own rooms! SCORE! They were huge! It was like having a personal suite all to ourselves -each! Crazy, right?

See? It was hard not to be impressed, even though it was Kyoya's house. And, techinally, it was his family's house. Yes, I really did try to console myself with that fact. Sue me.

Anyway, we were all shown to our rooms and got ready for dinner.

After I'd showered and changed into regular clothes (jeans and a red T-shirt), I sat on my (ginormous) bed, looking out the window at the water I'd almost drowned in. That Kelsey had almost drowned in.

Why did Kyoya jump in after me? I wondered. I thought we hated each other. You're supposed to be happy when the person you hate is near death, right? Jump for joy when they do die? Last I checked, saving an enemy is not really what was expected of a person.

I turned when there was a knock on the door. I stood, straightening my clothes as I crossed the room. "Coming," I said. I put my hand on the shiny, gold-colored handle and turned it, swinging the door open.

Serin gave me a small smile. "Hey."

"Hey," I said, kind of surpised to see her there. "You okay?"

She shifted her weight, looking down at the black T-shirt and jean capris she was wearing. "I just, um..." She threw herself through the doorway, almost knocking me to the ground in a hug. "You almost died!"

I patted her back, still kind of in shock.

"Don't you ever do that again, okay? You're practically my sister! I don't know what I'd ever do if you died!"

"I'll, uh...do my best," I said.

"Oh, and don't even get me started on Kelsey! That girl almost gave me a stroke!" She sighed, leaning back and walking into my room.

I closed the door and turned to look at her.

"I mean... She was lying there, not breathing." Serin clasped her hands together, trying to stop herself from shaking. "That had to be the flat-out scariest thing I've ever seen." A single tear rolled down her cheek. She exhaled shakily, then whispered, "She could've..."

I quickly stepped over and put my arm around her shoulders. "Serin, calm down," I said. "I'm okay, and Kelsey's okay. We're both up and walking around and breathing and alive. Thanks to the hosts. So there's no need to get all worked-up, okay?"

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "It still scared the crap outta me."

"No joke," I said. I smiled a little. "Honestly, I think Kelsey's far too stubborn to let death get her that easily."

Serin laughed softly and looked at me. "Speak for yourself. You're probably too blonde to even go into the light."

We both laughed, then looked up when there was another knock on the door. I went back over and opened the door.

Kelsey stood on the other side, hands clasped behind her back. She tugged on her off-white long-sleeved shirt, then on the hem of the purple-y skirt she was wearing. "Uh...hi," she said, her voice surprisingly small.

"Hey," I said.

Serin came over and looked out the door as well. "Hey, Kels. What's up?"

Kelsey rung her hands nervously. "C-Could I talk to you guys for a sec?"

"Of course," I said, opening the door wider.

She looked down as she walked in, silent.

Serin and I looked at each other as I closed the door again, wondering what, exactly, she was going to talk to us about.

Kelsey turned to face us, biting her lower lip. "So...back on the beach... Uh... Tamaki-senpai...he really gave me...CPR."

I didn't know whether to be relieved or worried. "Yeah," I said, nodding.

She glanced back and forth between the two of us, red creeping onto her face. "He really, uh...put his mouth..." She gestured toward her own mouth.

"Oh, yeah," Serin said. "Several times."

Kelsey's face was turning more and more red with every second that passed. "This, uh... This might sound silly, but, uh... Was there...? There wasn't any...?" She stuck her tongue out and pointed to it.

Serin gaped at her. "Uh, hello!" she cried. "He was saving your life, not making out with you!" She grabbed Kelsey's shoulders and shook her. "Get a grip, Kelsey Okamoto! You almost died and he saved your life! This is no time to be worrying about lip-to-lip contact with Tamaki-senpai while he was breathing life back into your body!"

"I'm grateful that he saved my life, but now that he's saved it, I think it's the perfect time to be worrying!" She facepalmed. "I can't believe this..."

"Omigosh!" Serin cried. Then she smiled. "Kelsey...!"

"What?" Kelsey asked, a little afraid of her change in tone.

She smiled widely and put her hands on Kelsey's shoulders, shaking her more gently than she had a moment before. "You like him!"

Kelsey's eyes widened. "N-No, th-that's ridiculous!"

"Not really," Serin insisted. "You like Tamaki-senpai."

Kelsey's face turned bright red (again). She put her hands on her cheeks, as if trying to hide the blood rushing to her face. "I-I, uh... I mean, um..."

I smiled and put an arm around Kelsey's shoulders. "It's nothing to be embarrassed about."

Kelsey bit her lip, then put on her calm-cool-collected face. "Of course not. Because there's no liking going on anywhere here. So what do I have to be embarrassed about? I was just concerned about the fact that there was lip-to-lip contat, but, as you pointed out, it was done in the process of saving my life, so there's really nothing to worry about." She looked down at the black sneakers on her feet for a moment. "Come on," she said. "Let's head over to the dining room." She walked over to the door, opened it, then went out, leaving the door open.

Serin and I looked at each other.

Serin grinned. "Dude, she is SO in love."

"Seriously," I said, smiling. "But, man, is she ever swimming in denial!"

"That goes for both of them. Hmm..." She had on her plotting face.

"Don't even start thinking about trying to get them together, Serin," I warned. "She knows who you like, so I wouldn't pull anything."

Serin started and looked at me. "Huh? Who might that be?"

I smiled and walked away, turning off the light as I left the room. "Oh, no one."

Serin ran after me. "Emi! Tell me! Who is this mystery person that I supposedly like?" Her tone told me that she was slightly nervous, as if she did like someone, and was afraid someone had found out.

"Really, it's not important," I said as we went down the hallway. "Right, Kels?"

Kelsey had stopped and was waiting for us. She smiled and fell into step beside me. "Right-o, EmiShae. Not important at all."

Serin gave us a look and groaned. "Come on, you guys! Tell me!"

"Nope," Kelsey said, smiling.

Serin grunted, frustrated. "I swear, I will Sparta-kick you both off the roof of this villa if you don't tell me!"

"Honestly," I said, "you should know already."

She started again, then blushed a little.

"See? You do know," Kelsey said with a smile.

Serin gave her a look. "Don't think this is over, Kelsey."

Kelsey giggled a little. "Oh, I don't expect this to be over for quite some time."

We continued down the hallway, each of us contemplating our own dilemmas from earlier that day. Kelsey was most likely convincing herself that Tamaki just saved her life because he had to (Nah, he wanted to.), and that she really didn't like him (Of course she really did). Serin was probably thinking about this person that she liked (hint, hint -Kaoru), and wondering how on earth Kelsey and I had found out about it (She's obvious, that's how).

I myself was still wondering about Kyoya saving me. Why had he done it, when he could've told anyone else to go in and get me? I thought. I thought Kyoya-senpai was the one who told everyone else what to do, doing little other than that himself.

I was also thinking that Kelsey had really come to talk to us about something other than Tamaki performing CPR on her. Something that she'd been discreetly hiding from all of us. It seemed so obvious now, but isn't that how finding out secrets usually worked? After you learn about them, all the signs suddenly rise to the surface, and you wonder how you didn't see it earlier. Now that I think about it, I thought, it's like when Serin and I learned about Haruhi being a girl. Okay, so these are completely different situations, but still.

But I wasn't about to bring up the topic right there in the hallway. Especially when Haruhi walked up as we got to the doors to the dining room.

We all stood and stared at her for a few moments. She was a in a frilly pink dress. Yes, a dress. Frilly and pink.

Now Serin and I were aware that Haruhi was a girl (duh), but we hadn't yet seen her in non-boy clothes. So it was a little weird.

"What the heck is that?" Kelsey asked.

Haruhi sighed. "My dad repacked my bags when I wasn't looking. I hate this frilly stuff..."

"I feel you there." Kelsey shook her head. "Your dad's still the same as ever, it seems."

"He never changes." Haruhi rolled her eyes. "Let's just get this over with."

"Right." Kelsey turned to the doors, pushed down the handles, and let the doors swing open.

The dining room, like the rest of the house, was absolutely magnificent. A long, wooden table that sat at least twenty sat in the middle of the room. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, bathing the room in a soft yet bright yellow glow. The floor was covered with a rich, soft-looking red carpet -the kind that makes you want to walk barefoot all over it. Several large marble pillars stood across the room, holding up the ceiling and framing the windows behind them.

But the room wasn't the only thing being marveled at.

"Whoa!" Honey said, smiling widely at us.

The four of us glanced at each other, wondering just who he was "whoa"-ing at.

"Haruhi, where'd you get that dress?" the twins asked.

Haruhi rolled her eyes. "From my dad. He's always trying to get me to wear this girly stuff..."

"But you are a girl," Kelsey said quietly.

Haruhi gave her a look, but she just smiled.

The twins gave Haruhi's dress two thumbs up, and then said her dad was "awesome" for packing her a dress.

The rest of the hosts were standing around the table...except for Tamaki. For some reason, he was hiding over behind one of the pillars, peeking out at us.

I raised one eyebrow and thought, I will never stop wondeirng about that one.

"You all look so cute!" Honey gushed, giggling.

This one either, I thought. Unless he grows a foot or two and his voice deepens. And maybe if he gets rid of the bunny, too. Yeah, like that's ever gonna happen.

"Thanks, Honey-senpai," Kelsey said, smiling as she blushed a little.

Serin was already over talking to the twins, and Haruhi was practically drooling as she looked at all the food that was being set out on the table. That left Kelsey and I on our own, awkwardly separate from the rest of the group.

I looked at her. "So you're sure you're feeling alright?"

She smiled at me. "Of course. I mean, after coming so close to dying, I'd say I'm doing great!"

I laughed softly. "I'm glad to hear it."

"You're feeling fine too, aren't you?" she asked, tilting her head to the side a little.

"Yes, I'm perfectly fine," I said. "Now that I finally got the taste of saltwater out of my mouth."

"Ditto."

We both laughed, then looked up when Kyoya announced that dinner was served.

To be honest, I was surprised Haruhi didn't just jump up on the table and start devouring every scrap of food in sight. You might say that Haruhi liked food. But just a little bit. Anyway, instead of doing all that, she calmly took a seat at the table. I was glad to see that she at least some degree of self-control.

Looking down on the table, here's how the seating went: On the left side, it went Serin, the twins, Kyoya, and myself. (How I got stuck there, I will never know.) On the right, it went Mori, Honey, Haruhi, Tamaki, and Kelsey. (At least I was across from one of the girls.)

Regardless of the seating arrangments, dishes were passed around without any trouble, and several conversations started up around me. I was happy to sit and listen as I ate, occassionally jumping in when Kelsey turned to talk to me about something. Serin being Serin, she even shouted down to me from the other end of the table from time to time. And me being me, I shouted right back, hoping I was giving Kyoya a headache.

Yeah, the guy saved my life and I probably should've thanked him. But he was still a miserly, cold-hearted jerk when you got right down to it.

It seemed that Kelsey and Tamaki were having no trouble at all making conversation, despite the somewhat awkward tension that had to have been between them. Even though I'd backed Serin up on her claim that Kelsey had nothing to worry about, I knew I'd feel the same way if a guy I possibly had feelings for gave me CPR and saved my life.

I started a little. Why in the heck did Kyoya-senpai just pop into my head? I wondered. Stupid blonde brain! Stop thinking these things! I was so shocked by the thought that I was tempted to pretend to drop something just so I could lean down and purposely hit my head on the table on the way back up. A good whack on the head was usually what I needed in those situations.

I could hear snippets of Serin and the twins' conversation, but I didn't strain to hear. I didn't really have an interest in the best method of firing a water balloon at a moving target.

Kyoya was silent the entire time. He didn't even look at me once.

I knew it, I thought, he's already regretting saving me. Well, too bad, Mr. Glinty-Glasses! I'm alive and kicking, thanks to you! Live with that on your conscience the rest of your life!

Haruhi was too busy eating crab to talk. She'd inhaled two already, and was starting on a third. Man, that girl could eat! ...So could Kelsey, really. Maybe another reason that they'd become friends...?

Mori was silent except for an occasional "Yeah" (or some other carefully chosen one-word sentence), and Honey was gasping and smiling at the food, the room, how we girls were dressed (still) -basically everything.

Just another ordinary meal with our Host Club family, I suppose.

After dinner was over and the table had been cleared, our group moved into the villa's entertianment room. Let me lay it out for ya: ginormous flat-screen TV, top-of-the-line video game systems (with the latest games), a pool table, air hockey, foosball...and a crystal chess set. Hey, this was the Ohtori's villa. There had to be some sort of intellectual thing going on.

The twins immediately latched themselves onto the video games, Serin right on their heels. Honey challenged Mori to a game of foosball, and of course he accepted. Haruhi flopped herself down in a large lounge chair in front of the TV, tired and full from all the crab she'd eaten.

Kelsey turned to Tamaki. "So, you any good at this game?" she asked, nodding towards the pool table.

He smiled. "I'd like to think I am. You?"

"I guess you could say the same." She grinned. "Think you can beat me?"

"It's worth a shot, right?"

She walked over to the wall and picked up two sticks, handing one to Tamaki. "Then you're on, senpai."

I smiled a little to myself. They are just too cute, I thought. It's enough to make a girl shout, "Just shut up and kiss her already!" ...Sounds like something Serin would do. Note to self: Don't mention this thought to Serin.

Then I glanced at who was standing next to me. Why me? I wondered, looking at Kyoya out of the corner of my eye. Why does it always gotta me be?

"Do you play chess, Miss EmiShae?" he asked.

I jumped a little, surprised that he'd spoken. I collected myself, then decided to play it cool. I shrugged a little. "From time to time, yes."

"Then would you be so kind as to join me in a game?"

I looked at him, putting on a polite smile that rivaled even his own politest smile. "Certainly."

We walked over to the chess board, each of us taking a seat on opposite sides of the board.

I took one look at the clear glass pieces in front of me and started mentally kicking myself. You blonde! I cried in my head. The last time you played chess was with Serin, and she beat the pants off you, but let you say you'd won because you wouldn't shut up about the fact that she'd stolen your "cute horse pieces"! Kyoya-senpai's going to murder you!

Obviously, my interal voice just loved to state the obvious. But someone had to do it, right?

At least I remember how all the pieces move, I thought. At least, I think I do... We'll find out soon, won't we?

I tried to focus on the game in front of me amid the sounds of spinning foosball controls, pool balls colliding into one another, and video games (not to mention the various conversations floating through the room), but it was difficult. I kept forgetting the attempted strategies I'd come up with, leaving me wide open for defeat. But Kyoya was dragging my loss out, making me suffer.

He moved one of his bishops forward, capturing one of my pawns. "Would you mind if I asked you something?"

Again, I almost jumped when he broke the silence. But, instead, I stared at the chess board, pretending to concentrate just so I wouldn't have to look at him. "Depends on what it is." I moved a pawn forward, taking his knight. (Then I wondered if he'd left that move so out-in-the-open hoping I'd overlook it. It was possible.) I set the black crystal horse off to the side of the board. "Go ahead."

He rested his elbow on the armrest of the chair, leaning his chin on his fist. "Why didn't you run?"

Now I looked at him. Did I miss something here? I wondered. "Excuse me?" I asked.

"Earlier, up on that cliff. You must've had the opportunity. Why didn't you -any of you- run?" He reached forward, moving a castle piece forward. Right into the path of my bishop.

I moved my bishop and took his castle, again wondering why he kept playing such random, unfounded moves. At least, they seemed that way to me. But what did I know about chess, anyway?

I thought as I set yet another of his pieces off to the side of the board. "Serin and I did have a couple chances, yes."

He looked at me. "So I ask you again, why didn't you run?" It was the most serious I'd heard him sound in quite a long time. It scared me a little, to be honest.

I couldn't think of anything to say right away. I had to think for a few moments. "I'm not positive about Serin, but I didn't run because I wasn't about to leave my best friends. I wasn't about to run away like a coward."

"You could've run for help."

He moved a pawn. I took his pawn with my bishop.

"The guy grabbed me again before I could. Kelsey kept telling us to run-"

"Why didn't you listen to her?" he cut in.

He moved a piece. I captured it.

"She kept saying she could handle it-"

"For all you know, she could've."

He moved. I captured.

"Are you saying my life was in more danger than hers? Or just that her life is worth less than mine?"

"Neither. But do you really know whether or not she could've dealt with those men on her own?"

He moved. I captured.

"You're saying you do know?"

"I'm not claiming to know anything. I'm asking you."

He moved. I captured.

"And now I'm asking. What does it matter to you anyway?"

"It matters because you don't seem to care at all what happens to you."

His pieces were slowly dwindling, and my pile of captured pieces slowly growing.

"I value the lives of others more than my own. I'm sure Kelsey would tell you that that's why she was saying that she could handle the situation. If you want to know so badly, just go ask her."

"My point is not whether Kelsey was capable or not. My point is that you could've been killed."

"But I wasn't."

"Only because we got there in time."

"And we did our best to make sure of that by me screaming my lungs out. In lieu of being able to get away, that was our only option. So we took it. Call me stupid and reckless if you want, but it won't change the fact that I care less about my life than Serin's and/or Kelsey's. We were in a desperate situation today, and I did what I thought was best. You may disagree, but I never really asked for your opinion, now did I? Look, you saved me and all that, you and Tamaki saved Kelsey, and Kaoru kept Serin from falling off that cliff in the first place. So do you think it'd be possible for you to just be grateful that everyone's okay and that we all lived through this day? I don't know about you, but I'd like to put this thing in the past as quickly as possible."

We both looked at the near-half-empty chess board, both of us silent.

Kyoya finally leaned forward towards the board, tipping over his king. He leaned back into his chair. "Checkmate."

More silence, mine more incredulous than his. I...I'd actually beat him?

He stood, putting a hand in his pocket. I honestly half-expected him to pull out a gun and shoot me for beating him at chess. But he didn't. He just walked away from his chair and past me. "Goodnight, Miss EmiShae." He left the room without so much as a goodbye to anyone else. Not that anyone else really seemed to take notice.

I looked at the chess board again, thinking. There's no way I won, I thought. Or...is it possible that he let me win? No! Now I can't brag to anyone that I beat him! ...Not that anyone would believe me anyway.

I sighed. It's like I've come to say: I just have a knack for ticking the Shadow King off.

I put my chin in my hand, looking around to see what everyone else was doing.

Honey and Mori had moved away from foosball and were now watching Serin and the twins play video games. (It looked like Kaoru was winning, but it was hard to tell from where I was.) Haruhi looked ready to fall asleep in her chair, as did Honey.

I turned a little and looked over at the pool table. Kelsey was lining up her (final) shot. Then she took the shot, sinking the last ball into a side pocket. She smiled widely and clapped her hands. "I beat you, senpai!"

"What? No way!"

Kelsey laughed, then grinned. "I won fair and square!"

Tamaki chuckled, running a hand through his hair. "I guess you did. You're better at this than you let on!" he accused.

She grinned. "Maybe..."

They both laughed.

I laughed softly with them. Now I wanted to say something like, "Come on, you two. You don't like each other? Really?" Denial!

"Nooo! Kaoru, now it's on!"

I looked over at Serin. (They were playing some sort of racing game.)

"Good to hear you weren't doing your best twenty minutes ago," he said teasingly. "Because you're failing miserably."

"Shut up! Eat my dust!"

I laughed a little at them, too. In their own ways, I thought, they're all so cute together. Couple-wise, I mean. I swear, if something doesn't happen with these four and fast, I'm going to have to do something.

Kelsey skipped over to look at the TV, Tamaki walking along behind. "Who's winning?"

"Me!" Serin claimed.

"Unfortunately, Kaoru's winning," Hikaru said, sounding disappointed. "How come you always gotta beat me at this, Kaoru?"

Kaoru laughed. "It's not my fault I've got better hand-eye coordination then you."

I rolled my eyes and thought, Yeah, because hand-eye coordination has everything to do with a race car video game.

Kelsey looked away from the TV and looked at me. She then skipped her way over. "What're you doing over here by yourself?" She looked at the chess board, then looked back at me. "You won?"

I nodded. "But I have this strange feeling he let me win."

She raised an eyebrow. "Why on earth would he do that..." she wondered quietly, adjusting her glasses. "Where's Kyoya-senpai, anyway?"

"I guess he went to bed. Had enough fun for one night," I said dryly.

Kelsey smiled understandingly. "He's probably just a little tense from what happened. Aren't you?"

I shrugged. "A little." I looked at her. "You feeling okay?"

"I just kicked Tamaki-senpai's butt at pool. How do you think I'm feeling?"

We laughed.

"Good," I said, smiling.

"NOOO! Kaoru, I'm gonna kill you!"

Kaoru laughed as Serin glared at him. If looks could kill, Kaoru would've been dead right then. For Serin's sake, it's a good thing that phrase doesn't hold true.

Honey sat up and rubbed his eyes, looking out the window across the room from him. "Wow, look at those clouds," he said. "It looks like it's gonna rain."

Now I could've been wrong, but I'm almost positive that Haruhi and Kelsey suddenly looked very alert, as if something Honey had said was important.

Hikaru looked up at the clock on the wall. "And it's getting late. We should head off to bed."

"Yeah," Mori said, nodding.

Kaoru looked around. "Hey, where'd Kyoya-senpai go?"

"He headed off to bed a little while ago," I said. "He was tired."

Everyone seemed satisfied with that answer, and, as soon as all the elctronics and lights were off, we headed out of the room and down the hallway towards our bedrooms.

Serin and the twins took the lead, Serin still threatening to take Kaoru's life for beating her in video games. (See, having me for a best friend, she'd gotten used to winning. Now that she'd actually played someone who could -and did- beat her, she was quite upset.) Kaoru just laughed, telling her that she'd never really do it. Hikaru walked at his brother's side silently, a small frown on his face.

Haruhi was behind the twins, walking next to Honey. The two of them kept yawning, and looked exhausted. Mori walked behind them, making sure they weren't dragging their feet too much.

Tamaki and Kelsey walked in front of me, and I was at the end. I was trying to hide my smile the entire time I was watching them. Kelsey, being the oblivious person that she was, probably didn't notice, but Tamaki kept motioning like he was going to take her hand or touch her arm as they walked and talked. The look on his face was just priceless -a mix of shy, nervous, and happy all at once. Kelsey just kept smiling that beautiful smile of hers at him, totally unaware of what he was so clearly thinking. It was enough to make me want to just grab their hands and put them together. Or make them hug or something.

We all veered off as we reached our separate rooms, saying goodnight to each other as we did so. I was about to go into my own room when I heard Tamaki say, "Kelsey?"

I stopped and looked.

Kelsey turned back to look at Tamaki. "Yes?" She blinked up at him, her blue-green eyes full of curiosity.

Tamaki swallowed and looked at her. "I, uh..." He shook his head. "N-Never mind. Goodnight."

She furrowed her brow in confusion. "Goodnight, Tamaki-senpai."

He nodded and walked away, going into his own room.

I sighed, exasperated. Now this whole thing is just getting ridiculous, I thought. I oughta go over and give Tamaki a little pep talk. ...Of course, I really have no idea what I'd say to him, I reminded myself as I closed the door to my room.

I turned on the light and went over to my suitcase. I tugged out my pajamas and changed, feeling much more tired than I had felt a few minutes before. Guess that's how pajamas are supposed to make you feel, but still.

I moved my suitcase onto the floor and flopped down on my bed. As usual, I replayed my day and did my routine wonderings.

Why did Kyoya-senpai let me win that game? And what does he care whether I ran or not? Yeah, I probably should've run. No, it is what I should've done. I just don't like admitting he's right.

Tamaki-senpai's turned into a stuttering idiot! He's GOT to tell Kelsey how he feels! And soon! Or I'll just do it for him! Seriously, are they the only ones that don't see the connection they so obviously have?

I wonder if Serin will actually kill Kaoru. I thought she liked him. Is being better than her at video games really one of her deal-breakers? Hmm, it's so difficult to tell with Serin.

I kept trying to push my bigger, more serious wonderings out of my head, but it was no use. Images of Kelsey lying unconscious on the beach just wouldn't go away. It seemed like she'd already forgotten about the possibility that someone had seen. Or maybe she was just better at hiding her feelings than we thought she was. That seemed more likely. You don't just forget about something like that. Not easily.

I was mulling over these and other things when I heard a knock. Then my door opened a crack. "Emi? You awake?" Serin's voice asked quietly.

I jumped up and went over to the door, opening it wider. "Serin? What's up?"

"Couldn't sleep."

I blinked at her. "You were only in your room for, like...ten minutes. Fifteen, tops."

"And, like I said, I couldn't sleep."

That's Serin for you.

She looked down at her feet for a moment. "I... You know what I said earlier, about waiting to see if Kelsey would approach us about...about it?"

I nodded, waiting for her to continue.

She bit her lip. "Well, I think we should go talk to her about it. It's the right thing to do, right? I mean, in a situation like this?"

I thought for a moment. "That seems like the case... I just don't know if she's willing to talk."

"She has to talk to us." Serin sounded desperate. "We're her best friends. She's just got to talk to us."

I nodded a little. "If you say so, Serin..." I took a deep breath. "Okay, then. Let's go see what's going on."

We poked our heads out of the room, then jumped back in when a flash of lightning lit up the room. We yelped quietly, grabbing each other. The thunder came next, booming through the air.

We both breathed sighs of relief. Just a thunderstorm...

We peeked back out when we heard a door opening. We were surprised to see Kelsey practically running out of her room and across the hall...to Haruhi's room? She knocked on the door.

No answer.

She knocked again.

Nothing.

She straightened herself up. "I'm coming in!" And she did just that, leaving the door open behind her.

Serin and I looked at each other, nodded, then jogged across the hall to Haruhi's door.

"Haruhi Fujioka, get out of that wardrobe! Now!"

We looked at the wardrobe, confused. Why was Haruhi in it?

"No! I'm fine, Kelsey," Haruhi's voice insisted (coming, indeed, from the wardrobe). "I'm fine."

"Don't give me that." She tugged on the handles to the wardrobe's doors. "Now come on out of there."

"No!"

"Uh...what's going on?" Serin asked.

Kelsey looked at us, just realizing we were there. She sighed. "Close the door, guys. I'm sure she doesn't want the hosts hearing about this."

We stepped inside and did as she said. Then we crossed the room and went to stand closer to her.

"Come on, Haruhi," Kelsey tried again.

"Would you just go away?"

She sighed and looked at us. "Haruhi's terrified of thunder and lightning. Been this way ever since we were little."

"Why don't you just go tell the whole world? !" Haruhi snapped.

"I'm trying to help you! And it's just Emi and Serin, for crying out loud!"

"I don't need your help! I got through all those other storms just fine without you, Kelsey!" Haruhi yelped when another roll of thunder broke through the air.

Kelsey tugged on the doors again, straining. "You liar. You were always hiding under the table with a blanket over your head crying. You weren't fine then, and you're not fine now. So let me help you!"

"Why should I when you can't even help yourself?"

Kelsey froze, her eyes widening.

"Why on earth would I accept your help after all that you've done? !" More thunder. More whimpering. We heard Haruhi gasping quietly.

Kelsey slowly took her hands back from the doors.

"How could you help when all you know how to do is hurt people? !"

Kelsey squeezed her eyes shut, hanging her head. She took a shaky breath, then looked back at the doors. "You think I'm the only one who knows how to inflict pain? It's not an art form. You know how to do it, too, Haruhi. You seem to have a few gaps in your memory. You can't just blame this all on me so you feel better about how you moved up in life and left me behind. You can't satisfy your guilty conscience that way.

"You left me to rot in that horrible excuse for a middle school. Out of desperation, I went- No, I crawled to them. And because of that desperation, I became their pawn. Their experiment. And I let it happen because I was weak, and I didn't care."

Serin and I might as well have not been there, from the kind of conversation they were having. We just stood and listened, trying to make sense of what was going on.

Kelsey continued, her voice heavy and threatening to break into sobs any moment. "You were all I had, Haruhi! My only friend in the world! Do you have any idea what it was like for me when you left? You've always had friends! And you had your mom, and you still have your dad, but I had no one! Not even my parents.

"So I figured, Hey, since it seems even my best friend hates me, not to mention my entire family, let's just screw everything else up, because what the heck do I matter anyway? And that's exactly what I did."

She shuddered, holding back a sob. "I wish I could take it all back, Haruhi! I wish I had never done any of it! But I can't change that! What I can change is now -who I am in this moment. I can try to make myself into a better person instead of...getting locked up for the completely stupid and moronic things I did.

"That's why I came to Ouran, Haruhi. I know you might think I did it as some joke or to haunt you or something, but I had no idea that you were enrolled there. No, I worked my butt off to get in after the last of my family kicked me out so I could have a second chance on all this. I don't want those labels people used to stick on me to be all I ever am! ...I don't wanna try to be something I'm not just to feel like I'm alive. I want to feel alive merely by wanting to be alive! I just want to be me for once in my life! So why can't you just let this go, and let me try to move on with my life? !"

She pulled on the doors again, throwing them open and looked down at Haruhi, who was curled up on the floor of the wardrobe. Kelsey and Haruhi looked at each other, both their faces stained with tears.

Kelsey hiccuped out a sob. "I don't hate you, Haruhi. I did for a long time, but I don't hate you. I'm trying to be your friend." She held out a hand to her. "I'm trying to make it right."

A long, heavy silence weighed down the air.

Tears were flowing down my own face. Whatever had happened, and whatever Kelsey had done... It sounded like she'd really messed up. She had every right to be angry with Haruhi for leaving her, and yet here she was, offering her hand in friendship.

Serin reached over and took my hand, squeezing it tightly. I squeezed back as tight as I could. It sounded like we had a lot more to talk to Kelsey about than we'd thought.

Another flash of lightning and another roll of thunder broke through the room, and Haruhi gasped and jumped up, grabbing onto Kelsey's hand and pulling herself towards her.

Kelsey wrapped her arms around her tightly, sinking to the floor. "I know you're scared," she murmured. "But you don't have to be alone anymore." She smiled a teary smile at us. "And neither do I."

We smiled a little back.

Kelsey closed her eyes and started humming, rubbing Haruhi's back. Then she started singing quietly.

"God is bigger than the boogie man
He's bigger than Godzilla or the monsters on TV
Oh, God is bigger than the boogie man
And He's watching out for you and me..."

I had to smile. It might seem silly to some, but sometimes songs meant for little kids are just what you need to get you through the scary times.

Serin tapped me on the shoulder and nodded to the windows. I nodded back and we went over and pulled the curtains on the windows closed. It helped to dampen the thunder, and the lightning was all but gone.

"I'm sorry," Haruhi sobbed. "I'm sorry, Kelsey. I shouldn't have said those things. I'm so stupid!"

"Shh," Kelsey said quietly. "It's okay. I forgave you a long time ago. I had to. My therapist said it was the only way to move on."

Haruhi laughed a little through her tears and Kelsey smiled.

Haruhi's sobs quieted after a few minutes, at which point she leaned away from Kelsey and wiped her eyes.

Kelsey wiped her eyes as well, smiling at Haruhi.

"I really am sorry."

"I know you are," Kelsey said. "And I'm sorry, too. It was wrong of me to blame you for things that were so obviously my fault."

Haruhi sniffled. "Yeah, but I could've handled my end of it a little better, couldn't I have?"

Kelsey smiled a little. "Well, it's all in the past. We're older and wiser. Now we know better."

Haruhi nodded. "Right."

They stood.

"Will you be okay now?"

Haruhi nodded. "Yes, I'll be alright." She looked at us. "Thank you to both of you, too."

We just nodded, not exactly sure on what she was thanking us for.

Kelsey hugged Haruhi one last time, and then we said our goodnights and left the room.

Serin, Kelsey, and I stood in the hallway outside Haruhi's doors for several long minutes.

Kelsey sighed. "I owe you guys an explanation."

I shook my head quickly. "No, you don't have to-"

Kelsey held her hand up. "Yes. I really do. C'mon."

Serin and I looked at each other, then followed her to her room.

Kelsey turned on the lamps on either side of her bed. "I'll be right back." She went into the bathroom and shut the door. She came back out about a minute later, her long-sleeved pajama shirt replaced with a loose T-shirt. Her arms were folded firmly across her chest as she walked across the room. She sat down on her bed, crawling up towards the pillows. She sat facing us, then nodded for us to sit, too.

"I've been trying to find an opportunity to explain all night, but..." She looked at us. "I was afraid. I've been afraid all this time."

I put a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. We're your friends."

"Right," Serin said, nodding. "We're here for you, no matter what."

"I guess now's as good a time as any." She laughed softly. "Funny. I don't know where to start."

"How about at the beginning?" Serin suggested.

Kelsey sighed and nodded. "Okay. Here goes." She took a deep breath, then blew it out slowly.

"My parents passed away when I was very young. Then I went to live with my grandmother. She passed away when I was about nine. After that, I lived with one of my uncles and his family. After eight months, they labeled me a problem child because I didn't want to play with their kids who, to be honest, were spoiled little brats. I then went to live with my aunt. She lasted almost an entire year, then decided I would have to go because I'd taken a liking to black clothes and nail polish. The next uncle labeled me hopeless because I wanted to be a musician. He lasted about three months. When I was eleven, I started middle school while I lived with another aunt. She got rid of me after my second year because I was too quiet. I moved five times during my third year alone. Then an intervention was staged, but I'll get to that later.

"As you already know, Haruhi and I were friends all the way through our last year of middle school. She helped me a lot when I was being bounced around through my different family members. Helped me stay focused and pushed me farther, taught me not to settle for second best. Then...during the break between our second and third years, Haruhi informed me that she'd be going to a different middle school for her last year. We had a big fight about it, but it didn't change anything. My best friend was still transferring.

"I didn't know what to do without her. The friends and acquaintances she'd made all ignored me, labeling me as mousy and uninteresting. I slipped into depression, and fell hard and fast. That's when they found me -the Vultures. That's what they call themselves, and it's a perfect fit. They prey on the weak and the helpless. They go to them when they're at their lowest point, promising a way to feel good again, and ways to have fun... The thing that makes them dangerous is they know how to deliver. They become your friends, your something to lean on. And by the time you decide you want out, they've already got you chained to them."

She took another deep breath, this one shakier than the first. "They showed me life on the other side of the tracks. It started small. 'Try a cigarette. It won't hurt you.' 'No one's looking. Steal that lipstick.' 'Let's skip class all week.' Then the next level. 'Come on, just one drink.' 'Sneak out to this party with me.' And it just escalated to worse and worse. 'It's a release. It feels good. Like watching all your troubles stain the sink red as they drain away.' 'This'll take you to new levels of high. Try it once, and you'll never want to come down.'

"They had me. They got me so easily because I let them take me. I became one of them. A rule-breaker. A partier. A... A druggie." She squeezed her eyes shut again. "I became part of the group everyone feared...and I liked it. I liked talking back to teachers and my family, and running down the hallways with other girls cursing at the top of our lungs. I liked bragging about getting thrown out of yet another family, or about spending another night in prison. I liked scaring the good students. I liked starting fights and knocking people unconscious. I liked being known as the bad girl, the one to stay away from. The girl who..." She lowered her voice to a horrified whisper. "...slept around. The one with a different boy on her arm every day. I actually liked how I lived." She didn't even sound like she believed it.

"I liked cutting and smoking and shooting up and drinking... Because I didn't know what else I had to live for anymore. Looking back now, I...I guess I had some sort of sick death wish." She shuddered, tears rolling down her face.

"Then early one morning...I woke up in some apartment I couldn't remember going to. I was naked, laying next to a guy I barely recognized. The sun wasn't even up yet. I quietly got up and pulled my rumpled clothes on. Then I sneaked into his bathroom and turned on the light, trying to do something about my hair.

"Then I stopped and looked at myself, at the smeared dark makeup around my eyes. I was hung-over, tired, strung-out, bruised and battered... And I was suddenly horrified at that face that was looking back at me. I started wondering when I'd turned into this nightmare. I wondered how I'd gotten to this point. When I'd become this stranger staring back at me from the mirror. Then...I looked down at my arms...and this is what I saw."

She unfolded her arms, holding them out in the soft light of the lamps.

Serin and I looked at them, and every thought we had about seeing something we hadn't was silenced. Because earlier on the beach, we'd seen it all too clearly.

On the inside of both her elbows were treadmarks from where she'd injected drugs into her veins. On her wrists were scars from where she'd cut herself, bleeding out all her pain and troubles. But there were other scars besides the horizontal lines. Scarred into her forearms were actual words. I couldn't even imagine the pain of cutting, let alone carving whole words into your arms.

On her right arm was the word Perfect. On her left, the word Beautiful.

"I don't remember putting those words there. I was probably high when I did it." She folded her arms into her lap. "I don't know why I picked those words either. How could I have ever thought of myself as those things at the time? Like I said, I was probably high. Everything seems 'beautiful' and 'perfect' when you're high."

She exhaled. "Anyway, I got myself home on that early morning, and was determined to make things right. I cut off my long, tangled hair, leaving it short and choppy. I switched back to glasses instead of contacts. I bandaged up my arms so no one would see. I flushed my stashes down the toilet. I didn't know what had suddenly come over me, or what had woken me up, but as I was doing all that, I got a big hint.

"My Bible, which I hadn't opened in at least a year, was lying open on my desk. When I looked at it, it was opened to Psalm 23. I practically collapsed into tears as I was reading it, and dedicated myself to memorizing the whole thing right that moment.

"'The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honor to his name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me. You prepare a feast for me in the presence of my enemies. You honor me by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows with blessings. Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.'"

She smiled, tears rolling down her face. "I read that...and I realized that I wanted to be someone who deserved the green meadows and the peaceful streams. I wanted to be deserving of someone who would walk beside me through my darkest times, no matter what I did. I wanted to be someone that He would be proud of. I thought of how ashamed my parents and grandparents would be to see what I had done to myself. I wanted to be someone they would be proud of, too.

"Anyway, I went and told my latest aunt that I wanted to be taken to a hospital. I knew I was going to go into withdrawls, and I didn't want her kids to see that. They'd seen enough from me already."

She hung her head a little. "But, by then... She told me that they'd already prepared for me to go away. To a special rehab center. I would be able to continue school while I was there...but, when I got out, I wouldn't be allowed to stay with them -or any of my family- anymore.

"I'll spare you all the gory details of rehab. It wasn't pretty. Addiction-fueled tirades, beating up doctors who wouldn't give me a smoke, sleepless nights filled with hallucinations... All I had to keep me going was my Bible, and that image of green meadows and peaceful streams.

"Once I'd finally dried out and all that, I was allowed to leave. But, like I said, I couldn't go home. And I certainly wasn't going to go live with any of the Vultures. I learned that day that my family had left me a large sum of money. I guess they weren't totally devoid of compassion for me. So I got myself some gloves and long-sleeved shirts, and started apartment-hunting. Once I got that settled, I got myself a car, and it was back to school.

"From the minute I walked back in, I knew that everyone had heard about where I'd been. I wasn't ashamed that I'd gone to rehab. But I was ashamed that I'd had to go to rehab at all. The other students still saw me as the dealer or the bad girl. I never lived down that reputation. And it didn't help that the Vultures pecked at me constantly, prodding at me to get me to go back to them. I refused time and time again, and they in turn refused to leave me alone. Meanwhile, I went to all my teachers and asked what I could do to get my grades back up before graduation. Lucky for me they were willing to help or I'd still be back there now. I managed to get passing grades in all my classes and hold off the Vultures until graduation.

"I'd been looking at high schools, and came across Ouran Academy. I didn't have nearly enough money to pay for tuition, but I thought I'd see if I could get in anyway. Obviously, I did, then they offered me a full-ride scholarship, and...the rest is history."

She looked at us, gauging our reactions.

I think it's obvious, but Serin and I were both just looking at her, tears running down our faces. She'd seemed almost...calm while she told us her story. I think that calm scared us a little. She'd really just scratched the surface of all that she'd done and who she'd made herself into. And she was sitting across from us, silently allowing tears to flow down her face. While Serin and I were almost sobbing. We were scared and shocked and worried...and Kelsey just looked at us.

I inhaled. "That's why you looked so surprised when I first met you," I said, my voice a shaky whisper. "I was probably the first person to even talk to you."

She looked away and nodded. "I was trying to blend in, just like I'd been taught by my many families who didn't want to deal with my quirks or personality. No one helped me when I was at my lowest point, so I was used to doing things myself." She smiled at us. "Then you two came along and changed all that." She looked ready to cry again. "I just wish I could tell you that I'm as good a person than you think I am." And she did start crying again.

We moved closer, wrapping our arms around her. This was the emotion we'd been expecting. But it didn't make it any less heartbreaking.

"And today-" She gasped, sobbing. "Today, I-I almost died. But I didn't because someone cared enough to jump in a-after me. Th-Then I woke up to p-people crying because I'd almost d-died." She sobbed violently. "If I'd d-died while I was still with th-the Vultures, no one would've cried. N-No one would've c-cared. B-Because it would've been m-my own f-fault. I would've j-just b-been a f-face and a n-name in the obituaries. A short little blurb about a pathetic, tragic young g-girl who died before her time because of the dumb way she lived her l-life." She sobbed again, tears surging from her eyes. "But t-today... For the first time...I felt like my l-life was worth s-something to someone. Th-That I mattered to someone."

We sat in silence for a few minutes, and her sobs slowly began to weaken.

"Kelsey, you're worth the world to us," I said. "And I think that's speaking for the hosts, too."

"You're our best friend," Serin said. "And of course we're going to do whatever we can to keep you around." She exhaled. "You're not a bad person," she said. "Maybe you used to be, but you're not now. As far as I'm concerned, you're the strongest person I know."

"Ditto," I said. "I don't know anyone strong enough to pull themselves out of that mess with no help whatsoever."

Silence for a moment.

"Promise us something," Serin said quietly.

Kelsey sniffled, trying to take deep breaths. "Yeah?"

"Don't ever try to hide who you are again."

"Ever," I added.

She looked up and blinked at us.

"We love you just the way you are, quirks and all," I said with a smile.

She smiled and started crying again. "Thank you," she sobbed. She repeated it over and over, crying harder.

We hugged her tighter.

"It's like you said to Haruhi," Serin said. "You're not alone anymore."

"You've got us," I said. "Always."

I don't know how long we sat like that, just holding onto each other as she cried. She had a lot to cry out.

I never would've guessed, I thought. She's so optimistic and cheerful. You'd never even imagine the kind of person she was. But she was determined to kill that person and rebuild herself. And she did it. She actually did it. And she got accepted into Ouran Academy with a full-ride scholarship. She really turned it around. And she did it. She did have some help (if you know Who I mean), but none of her family helped her. She decided to start over. She wanted something better. Her family didn't force her. She did that all on her own.

Kelsey calmed down a little after several minutes. She sat up, sniffling. "I thought sure you guys would run for the hills as soon as I told you. That's why I was afraid."

"You kidding?" Serin asked, smiling. "There's nothing you could say that would make us want to stop being your friends."

"What is it you always told us?" I said. "'Friends don't abandon friends just because things get complicated.' Or something like that."

Kelsey laughed a little, wiping her eyes. "Right." She smiled at us. "Thank you both."

We just smiled back.

"Oh, one more thing," I said. "We're all imperfect beings and all that, but...as far as I'm concerned, you are beautiful, Kelsey."

"Same here, my friend," Serin said. "In my book, you're gorgeous."

She looked ready to cry yet again. She smiled and hugged us both. "Thank you so much, even-more-beautiful friends."

We hung on each other and laughed, our tears slowly falling away.

"I feel so much better," Kelsey said quietly, leaning back away from us.

We smiled at her.

She shook her head a little. "This is a release no amount of cutting ever gave me." She smiled back at us. "Now that you two know...I feel like I can...more fully move on. Is that weird to think that?"

"Of course not," Serin said. "Now you have people to help you."

Kelsey smiled and nodded. "Right." She tilted her head a little. "You guys really aren't freaked out?"

"More...surprised, I think," I said. "It's not like you're still that same person, Kels. I mean, you're not gonna pull a pack of cigarettes out of your bag and light up, now are you?"

We laughed.

"No, of course not," she said.

"Exactly," I said. "Because you learned from your mistakes. Now we can move forward together."

Serin smiled. "Side by side."

"Thank you," Kelsey said, her eyes tearing up again.

Serin and I sat up and talked with her for almost two more hours. We talked about anything and everything that came to our minds. We talked about growing up, school, friends, pranks, the hosts, video games, movies, books, music... Our laughter immediately lifted the heavy curtain that had been hanging around us, and it was almost like Kelsey had told us her story weeks before instead of an hour before.

Like I said, it wasn't something that's easily forgotten or overlooked or just pushed out of mind. But a big step in moving forward is doing just that -moving on. So you accept the subject, take it in, make some realizations, and then you move on to the next subject, all the while still contemplating the first thought. It's just what you have to do -keep walking.

;;;;;

Serin and I left Kelsey's room after she'd assured us at least ten times that she would be alright. We all needed some time to think by ourselves, I figured, but we also didn't want to leave one of us alone if we could help it.

Serin looked at me as we walked down the hall to our rooms. "What are you thinking?"

I sighed heavily. "I'm thinking I understand her a lot more now."

Serin nodded. "Yeah, me too." She shook her head a little. "I also feel like I wanna hunt down those Vultures and Sparta-kick them all off into the ocean."

I laughed softly. "I'm sure Kelsey would never admit it, but she'd probably approve of that."

She smiled and looked at me. "Yeah, she probably would..."

I looked up at the ceiling at least twenty feet above my head. "I guess she could've handled those guys back there," I murmured to myself.

"What was that?" Serin asked.

I shook my head. "Nothing. Just talking to myself." I stopped and looked at the door to Kyoya's room, wondering if he was still awake. I had a few more choice words for him.

"Are you alright, Emi?"

I looked back at Serin, blinking at her. "Perfectly fine." I turned the handle on the door to my room and went inside. "I'm just tired, I guess."

Serin smirked. "Yeah, you used up all your energy playing Kyoya-senpai at chess."

I gave her a look, and she laughed. "I won that game, I'll have you know!"

Serin raised an eyebrow. "That means you either cheated, which you wouldn't know how to do if your life depended on it, or..." Her eyes widened and she looked at me. "Omigosh, did he let you win?"

"I don't know, okay? All I know is he tipped over his king and said, 'Checkmate.' And, even with my little knowledge of the game of chess, I know that means, 'You win, I lose, end of story.'"

She smirked again. "Whatever you say, dearest Emi." She walked over to her door. "Goodnight."

I sighed. "Goodnight..."

She laughed again and went into her room.

I stepped into my own room and stopped, my hand still on the door. I looked back over my shoulder at Kyoya's door, thinking. I shouldn't push it, I thought. I already got him twice today. I shouldn't push for the magic number three.

I thought of Kelsey alone in her room down the hall, most likely mulling over all she'd told us, and even more likely crying herself to sleep.

Maybe I'll take a cue from her old self and take the risk, I thought.

I pulled my door closed and quietly stepped across and down to his door. I bit my lip, hoping no one would catch me and that he was still awake. I didn't want to "disturb" the Shadow King anymore than I needed to.

I took a few deep breaths, running over what I wanted to say in my mind. Then I raised my hand, readying for a knock. I tilted my hand back, then started to move it forward, when a voice made me freeze.

"Tamaki, you can't be serious."

My back stiffened. Kyoya was still awake, and talking to Tamaki, it sounded like.

"Of course I'm serious, Kyoya!" Tamaki replied, a strange mix of seriousness and happiness in his voice. "How could you think I would joke about this?"

I heard Kyoya heave a heavy sigh. "Because I know how you get, Tamaki. You let your emotions take over, and you tend over-romanticize everything and everyone in your life. You really expect me to believe that it's different this time? And what about Haruhi?"

"Yes, I do expect you to believe me, because this is different! And Haruhi is my daughter! How could you even suggest that I had those kinds of feelings for her?" Now Tamaki sighed. "Kyoya, I confided in you because you're my best friend. And I want your advice and your opinion on this matter." He exhaled. "I've come to feel for her...as much as any other girl I've known. No, this is more. I'm sure of it."

"You don't even know her," Kyoya said, sounding a little incredulous at what Tamaki was saying.

"What is it that I seem to need to know, Kyoya, for me to be allowed to feel this?"

"You don't know her history. Her family, her education, her experiences... And do you think all of that is information she'd readily give any random person she came across?"

A shiver ran up my spine. Had Kyoya seen her arms? No...no, there was no way he'd seen her scars. ...Was there?

"What does her family matter? And I don't care where she went to school or any of those things. Isn't it enough that I care for the person she is now, not the person she was?"

"See, there you go again," Kyoya said, talking over Tamaki a little bit. "You don't really know this girl. You're letting the way you feel around her delude you into thinking that this is more than it is. How blind can even you be, Tamaki? What good could possibly come from you telling her all this now?"

"You don't know that," Tamaki shot back. "You can't predict what will happen if I tell her."

"But I can make a good assumption." Kyoya sighed again. "This is just another one of your flings, Tamaki. To be completely frank, I honestly believe that these feelings you have for her are not mutual."

Silence for a few moments.

WHAT? ! I screeched in my head. How could Kyoya-senpai possibly believe that? ! It is so flippin' OBVIOUS! Let's talk about how blind YOU are, Mr. Ginlty-Glasses!

"You... You really think that...she doesn't feel that way?"

"From what I can tell, no."

MAN! He really is an idiot! I yelled in my head. I oughta get Serin and have her Sparta-kick him off the top of this place! GEEZ!

They were again silent for some time. Then Tamaki spoke.

"No."

A few more moments of silence.

"Kyoya, you're my friend and I highly value your opinion and I do take your reasonings and beliefs seriously, but...unless I hear it from her mouth, I just can't believe that."

I heard footsteps getting closer and jumped away from the door. Kyoya's room was at the end of the hall, so I was ready to jump and hide around the corner if the moment called for it.

"So what will you do, Tamaki?"

The footsteps stopped.

"Continue your meaningless pining over these unrequited feelings?"

Silence again.

"Kyoya," Tamaki said, his voice low and serious. "You may think me pathetic for feeling this way about this young lady that's come into my life, not to mention yours, but I know in my heart that she is a good person. And maybe that comes from learning how not to be a bad person, and I'm okay with that. Maybe she does have a lot of darkness in her past, but it's not like she's the only one who does. We all have at least a little of it, don't we? And you know as well as I that I could care less about status and lineage. I know those things are important to you, but you also know that they're not nearly as important to me.

"I have no way of knowing whether you're right or wrong unless I ask her. And that's what I plan to do, when the time is right. Until then... You're my friend, Kyoya. Can't you support me like I've supported you in the past? That's what friends are supposed to do for each other, isn't it? Maybe I'll discover that you were right, and that this all was meaningless. All I know is that, if that's the case, I don't want to turn around to hear you say, 'I told you so.' So I'll just keep up the pining, Kyoya. Until I find the right time, I'm just gonna keep it going. And you can expect me to come to you again about this, so don't think it's over."

A longer silence now.

Wow, I thought. For a blonde like me, Tamaki-senpai can sure give a nice little speech.

Kyoya sighed. "It's your life, Tamaki. Do what you will with it."

I heard Tamaki laugh softly. "Goodnight, Kyoya."

I jumped away and around the corner as Kyoya replied with a goodnight of his own. Then I peeked around and watched Tamaki leave Kyoya's room and head back down the hall to his room. He paused outside Kelsey's door for a few long moments, and I half-wished that he would just knock and tell her already.

But then the other half of me knew that it wasn't the right time yet. Kelsey was probably still awake, tossing and turning and crying over all she'd told us. She wouldn't want Tamaki to see her like that.

Tamaki shook his head a little and went into his room, closing the door behind him.

I sighed and stepped out from my hiding place, going back to my own room and closing the door. I leaned against the door for a few moments.

This day, I thought. It just keeps getting stranger and stranger. Oh, except for my newly revived determination to kill Kyoya. Yeah, that's not strange at all.

3_3_3_3_3

EmiShae's predictions about Kelsey had been right. She lay awake in her bed until the early hours of the morning. She tossed and turned, echoes of memories bouncing around in her head. Her demons that had lain dormant for some time had reawakened with the retelling of her story and the reopening of her wounds. Those demons were ready to play, and they weren't about to let her sleep when there was so much to be done. She cried some, internally screamed a lot, and punched her pillow more than a few times.

She sighed. I can't believe I finally told them all that, she thought. I still can't believe I did -lived- all that crap. Man, how stupid was I in middle school? I was a total and complete moron. Not to mention selfish. What kind of friend would I have been to Haruhi if I'd let myself die in a car wreck, or of an overdose, or some other horrible thing? It's not like I didn't have the opportunites to die. I wonder why I didn't... Was it because of my sick death-wish, telling me that I did want to die, but that I was enjoying that life too much to get around to doing it? I don't know...

Then, of all people, she thought about Tamaki. That made her cry some more. Emi and Serin were understanding of her past and of her feelings, but how would someone like Tamaki react? Would he label her and discard her just like everyone else? This seemed like the most likely reaction to her.

Kelsey had trouble coming to terms with things -especially accepting people who actually understood her. Serin and Emi were the exception to the rule, but she usually found it very hard to believe that people really understood where she was coming from and what she'd been through. That's why she kept everything locked up tight where no one could get to it. She didn't want to burden others with her past pains, she didn't want to have to relive those pains in the retelling of her story, but most of all, she didn't want people thinking that she would so easily slip back into being that person.

That's what people usually had trouble understanding -change. Most people don't think that a person can truly change, can pull a one-eighty and completely turn their life around. That's what she'd done for herself, but the people at her old school had still seen her as who she had once been. And she couldn't blame them. It's human nature to resist change. Except when it's for the worst.

See, after someone hears a story like Kelsey's, they see that person in a whole new light. They see their dark side and their bad side. And they're usually more accepting of the dark past than the bright present and/or future. And with good reason. The past is set in stone. It can't be changed. The past can be trusted. But the present is always fleeting, and the future is ever-changing. People can be one way today, and have completely changed into someone else by tomorrow. The future is not to be trusted. So we accept the past and hold onto it tightly, because it's all we can believe in. Even if it's evil.

So Kelsey cried for what she feared would happen were Tamaki or any of the hosts to learn of what she'd made herself into. Of the evil life she'd lived. Of the demons that were now very much awake in her mind. She cried and cried and cried herself to sleep, fearing more than anything else the past that could strip her of all the good things she'd managed to gain.

The past may be all that can be trusted referring to time, but referring to life, it can be the very thing that tears you apart.

A/N: Yeah...I warned you. Really long. Just a couple more quick things, and then I'll end this chapter.

For those who don't know, the children's song that OC-me (Kelsey) sang to Haruhi is "God Is Bigger" from Veggietales. I love Veggietales, and the song seemed somewhat appropriate :) Also, for those who don't know, yeah, I'm a Christian :) Jesus FTW! ^.^ Sorry if that offends you or...something, but it's what I believe.

When I was writing this chapter (at least, the part about Kelsey's telling of her story), I'd just watching the music video to "F'in Perfect" by P!nk about five times. It is probably the most moving music video I've ever seen. I was sobbing by the end. I won't tell you the whole thing, but there was one part about cutting (skin and hair), and the word perfect (obviously, since it's in the title), and that's how I got the idea for Kelsey's scars. I wanted to do something different than just ordinary scars, and then this came up, so it was (no pun intended) perfect. Go to YouTube and look the music video up, because it is AMAZING. (And there's a clean version, too -that's the one I have! There's virtually no difference between the clean and the uncut except for language, so no worries.)

I took the title of this chapter from a song of the same title by Owl City ("The Saltwater Room" -ah-MAZ-ing). It sort of has a dual meaning for this chapter. In the song, he refers to the ocean as the "saltwater room", and the characters are in Okinawa at a beach. But, as you saw in this chapter, a lot of tears were shed and a lot of pain and secrets were released. Tears taste salty, and they sometimes sting your eyes. The rooms and even the whole house that these people are in has figuratively become the "saltwater room."

So...yeah, there's that. Hope you find my thought process as interesting as I do. It mostly just confuses people, soyeah haha Thanks for enduring through it! Like I said, a LOT to get through. I'll be back soon with another chapter! Thanks for reading! ^.^