I am a horrible person, leaving you all on edge for so long. My life has been a whirlwind as of late, and I apologize for leaving this unfinished. It is officially Spring Break, so I will do my best to ensure that I get some more chapters done this week. Thank you so much, once again, for reading my little story. It really means the world to me that people actually like my stories!

-MJS

The 'guards' I had been assigned turned out to be a really smart thing to do; several times throughout the next couple weeks proved to be almost-disastrous. My locker had been booby-trapped more than once with either falling streamers or glue plastered on the tumbler, as well as various tripping attempts and spit ball shootings. Half of the attempts I was victim to, the other half was taken by my guards who spotted it a mile away. At lunch several times our usual sitting spot was overrun with Chie and her goonies, which only caused us to move somewhere else. I was slightly annoyed, but knew that all the stuff that Chie was trying to pull wasn't worth getting upset over. As Chie began to notice that her attempts to get back at me weren't succeeding, it only fueled her even further, almost to the point of obsession.

The worst prank she attempted to pull was the day before we were leaving for break; I had just lost my job at the delivery depot I had since starting school, and I was now currently scrambling to finish my school work to free up some time to find a new job to help cover our bills. My guards were still dutifully by my side almost anywhere I went; Tamaki had surprisingly taken up the majority of the watch-time when he could when Mori couldn't. We were actually walking into lunch when the worst prank happened, and I'm pretty sure that the experience will probably scar me for the rest of my life.

"Well, Talia, how were your classes so far today?" Tamaki asked as we stood in line for food.

"It was great," I smiled at him, glad that I had grown accustomed to his flamboyant ways and got to know him for real. "Nothing exciting has happened so far, so I'd say that Chie's finally learned her lesson."

"Let's hope so," Tamaki agreed as we pulled up to the front of the line. I selected a type of noodle dish that I had grown extremely fond of while Tamaki selected a similar dish with some form of bird being the main portion. Before we were able to leave, however, Chie popped up beside us, smiling just as big as could be.

"Hey there, Talia," she greeted, sounding different than usual. "How are you today?"

"I'm good," I answered warily, smiling half-back.

"That's good!" she crowed, and I glanced at Tamaki, who had not taken his eyes off of Chie. "Well, I wanted to let you know about this great new dish they're serving here. Look," Chie pointed to some form of dessert, which did looking very appetizing. "It has berries and all sorts of healthy stuff in it; would you like me to get you one?"

"Uh, no thanks, Chie," I shook my head. "No type of berry really agrees with me, so I think I'll pass."

"Are you sure? They're really good," Chie persisted, attempting not to sound desperate but her voice was strained.

"Positive," I nodded. "Thank you, though."

"I think I'll take one," Tamaki spoke up finally, smiling ever so kindly at Chie. "Will you please hand me a plate?" Something like fear flashed in Chie's eyes, but she soon recovered, doing as Tamaki had asked.

"Sure, here you go."

"Thank you very much," Tamaki smiled again, and then looked to me. "Let's go, Talia."

"Sure," I nodded, and then turned back to Chie. "Bye Chie."

"See you around," she agreed slowly before turning around and quickly heading back to her group of goons. I looked at Tamaki, and he just shrugged, not knowing what Chie's deal was either.

We went to our usual table – for some reason all of the girls were absent today, so it was just him and I – and began to eat our meals, talking about what we hoped to do over our break for the most part. Tamaki went on about the Host Club as usual, and about what he hoped that the club would do during their winter break, ranging from having a Christmas party to just hanging out at the school together. I was surprised when he mentioned me.

"Would you be willing to join us?" he asked, pausing from eating. I was in the middle of chewing when he asked, and the question took me so off guard I almost inhaled my food.

"I wouldn't want to intrude," I answered, after recovering from my near-episode. "Would you really want me there?"

"Of course you're wanted," Tamaki stated matter-of-factly. "You're a wonderful person to be around, and I don't think that the other members would be against it . . . especially not Mori-senpai," I paused from eating as he continued speaking, caught off-guard by what he was saying, "or, for that matter, Honey-senpai and Haruhi. They value your friendship very highly; I see it everyday in them, as well as Kyoya and the twins. I, too, believe you to be a friendly, caring person and a wonderful guest to have at the Host Club everyday." He looked at me, his violet eyes sparkling with his usual intensity.

"Really?" I set my fork down, looking at him. "You mean that?"

"I wouldn't have said it if it wasn't true." Tamaki smile and continued to eat, and after a moment I too continued, a warming happiness filling my heart. "Well, I suppose it's time to try that dessert that Chie insisted you had." He laughed, bringing me back to the present. He took a bite of the little cake, and he beamed. "She was right," Tamaki looked down at the little cake. "It is an exquisite dessert indeed. I wonder how . . ." Before Tamaki could ponder any longer we were soon distracted by a loud shriek and the sound of someone falling.

"Help! Somebody help!" A girl cried out, and immediately Tamaki and I shot up from our seats, wanting to get a glimpse of what was happening. A boy was laying on the floor, violently twitching, traces of vomit around him. I winced at the sight, and immediately people swarmed around him, blocking him from sight. Raised choruses of 'What happened?' and 'Somebody, get help!' arose everywhere until the room was filled with anxious clamor.

"What do you think happened?" I asked Tamaki as the crowd eventually parted on one side to allow a medical team through.

"I'm not sure," Tamaki answered, his voice only half here as he pondered. Before long, the noise died down, yet hushed murmurs still filled the air. "It may have been something he . . ." Tamaki slowly trailed off, his eyes locked on something on a nearby table. I followed his gaze to a small plate, and I gasped when I saw what was on it; a neat, half-eaten cake identical to the one that Tamaki had taken a bite out of.

"Oh, no," I gasped, rushing over without Tamaki. I snatched up the plate before anyone else could and turned to the next person I saw. "That boy that fell, did he eat any of this?"

"Yes," a boy spoke up next to me. "He was going on about how great it tasted before he became sick." I looked over at Tamaki, who was now doubling over in pain, looking as though he too would begin to retch in the cafeteria.

"Tamaki!" I exclaimed, taking the plate of cake with me and placing it down beside me on a table. "Are you alright?" I stepped back as Tamaki too threw up, attempting to hold it in and convulsing in the process. I patted his back, trying to help him when he eventually turned his head towards me.

"The . . . cake. . ." Tamaki managed to splutter. "Something's . . . wrong . . . with . . ."

"I know," I nodded, trying to keep my hand on his back for support. "Chie did something to those cakes, but one accidentally got out in the open." I glanced around to see a nurse checking to see if anyone else was sick. "Over here!" I called, grabbing her attention. Her eyes widened when she saw Tamaki, and I attempted to explain what had happened. "The first boy ate half of this," I said, pointing out the cake beside me, "and Tamaki ate only a bite of the one he had. We believe that the cause of illness is something in the cakes."

"Please bring those with us," the nurse softly ordered. "I will have a closer look at them once we're in the my office." I nodded in acknowledgement and scooped up the plate next to me and swiftly snatched up the plate where Tamaki had been sitting before I heard a voice behind me.

"Talia?" Mori's voice made me turn around quickly, almost spilling the cake everywhere. He rushed over to help, steadying my hands while I steadied my body.

"Mori!" I exclaimed once I recovered my balance. "What are you doing here? I thought you weren't here today!"

"I had an appointment earlier," he stated simply. "What's wrong with Tamaki?"

"I think Chie might have poisoned these cakes, because she tried to give one to me, but I said no, and then Tamaki took one and so did another boy. Now they're both sick." I explained quickly. "Come with me; I'll explain the rest on the way there." We followed the nurse to the nurse's station, Mori helping the nurse to support Tamaki while I filled him on the details of the lunch period so far. When arrived at the station, I was surprised to see a man waiting for us. He was overseeing the first boy when we entered, and his eyes widened when he saw Tamaki.

"Is he sick as well?" he asked, seeming very worried about Tamaki.

"Yes," I answered, drawing his attention to me. "They both ate similar cakes which may have been poisoned on purpose, and I believe I know who may have been behind such a malicious joke."

"Who are you?" he asked, his eyes narrowing. "What were you doing with my son?"

"My name's Talia Robinson, Mr. Suoh," I introduced briefly. "Tamaki was …"

"Tamaki was watching over Talia because there is a student here who has been very rude to her." Mori intervened, grabbing the man's attention and I was surprised when it softened. "She is a regular guest at the Host Club, and Talia believes that the person who poisoned the cakes intended for Talia to eat one."

"She approached me with one," I nodded, "but I turned it down. Tamaki, however, accepted." I looked over at my 'guard'; he had been laid on a bench and was breathing steadily, although his brow was drenched in sweat and his face twitched every now and then. "Now I wish that he hadn't; no one else should have to suffer just because Chie has an issue with me."

"May I see those please?" the nurse spoke up from Tamaki's bedside, and I quickly nodded, taking both cakes over.

"I don't know if any other one's were poisoned," I explained, "but I think it would be best to check."

"You're right," Tamaki's father nodded in agreement. He then whipped out a cell phone – much like Kyoya would do – and dialed a number rapidly. He moved over to a corner of the room, talking quickly and quietly to whoever was on the other line.

"Will he be alright, ma'am?" I asked the nurse, and as she examined the cakes, she nodded.

"I'm not familiar with the substance in these cakes, but they are certainly not meant for human consumption," the nurse answered, avoiding the question. "They appear to be some form of cleaning agent; I do not know whether the one boy will be alright or not, but since Mr. Suoh only took a bite, I'm sure he will be fine. I'll have one of the chemistry teachers come down immediately and examine these as well. There's already an ambulance on the way for the other student, however; this could be very serious indeed."

"See?" Tamaki commented, still weak from his body's sudden repulsion of whatever was in the cakes. "l'll be just fine; I just need some rest is all. No harm done."

I glanced quickly at Mori, who was focused on Tamaki, and then looked back at Tamaki. I shook my head in aggravation but before I could see whether either of the boys had looked back at me, I rushed out of the room, desperate to get away any way I could. I ran down the hall, ignoring everyone around me. I had to find somewhere to be alone; the anger and rage boiling inside me wouldn't be contained for very long.

I eventually came to an empty classroom; both students and the teacher were on their lunch break, so I ran in and slammed the door behind me. I paced furiously around the room, attempting to release my anger in some peaceful way. I only succeeded in snapping some pencils and crying. It's one thing for someone to attack me, I thought to myself, enraged, but it's a whole other story when my friends are attacked. I cannot believe that Chie would stoop that low; she must have known that I wouldn't have been the only person wanting a cake, so why did she take such a stupid risk in getting others sick when it would all be blamed on her in the first place? I shrieked incoherently, snapping some more pencils before curling up in a corner and crying. I was acting like a child, I admit it, but what else was I supposed to do? Whip out the magical antidote to cure Tamaki and the other boy? Wish on a shooting star that Chie never existed and that none of this ever happened? There was no other rational thing I could think of doing, so I simply let my rage flow out with my tears.

"Talia? Where are you?" Mori's panicked voice drifted in from the hall, but I didn't care. My crying would probably alert him to where I was soon enough. It wasn't long, as I thought, before Mori opened the door to the classroom and saw me in my miserable state, curled up in a corner like a child. "Why did you run off, Talia?" He came closer towards me, but I ignored him. "Why are you crying?"

"Why am I crying?" I repeated, still not looking in his direction. "One of my friends – and somebody I don't even know! – are lying in the nurse's station from being poisoned by some stupid cake that I was supposed to eat. It should have been me to eat the cakes and lie in there, not knowing if the pain will ever stop. Not them! It should have been me! This is my entire fault, I . . ."

"Stop it." Before I could finish another word, Mori had knelt down beside me, turned me around and hugged me, firmly and caringly. "It's not your fault. Please stop crying."

"It is my fault," I insisted, burying my face into his shoulder, my tears slowing as my nerves calmed. "If only I hadn't come here in the first place . . ."

"Stop it, Talia!" Mori's voice, hard and commanding, stopped me again. He pulled away so he could see my face. I, dumbfounded by his outburst, stared at him in shock. "I know that you feel awful and you think this is your fault," he continued in a gentler voice, wiping away the last of my tears with his hands, "but it's not. Tamaki knew what he was doing. Anyone would have done the same."

"But, why . . ."

"Chie will never be caught unless something happened to someone other than you." Mori explained, his onyx black eyes searching my face, begging me to understand. "Tamaki knew what he was doing; now Chie will be questioned, and with the proof we have against her, she'll be punished properly."

"But . . . that doesn't change the fact that Tamaki is in pain! That anyone else is suffering because of her actions! And she only did those things because of me!" I persisted, taking Mori's hands in my own, partially keeping them on my face. "None of it should have happened. I feel terrible about everything. . ."

"It's not your fault," Mori drew me back into a hug, which I returned with force. "You're alright; Chie will be punished for what happened. Tamaki and that other student will be fine." No more tears came, but Mori gently stroked my hair as I held onto him.

"Thank you," I whispered. "I'm sorry that I'm acting this way and that you have to see me like this, Mori."

"No," he whispered back. "Thank you for letting me help you; I didn't know if you still wanted to keep your distance because of the accident," I froze at the thought of the fall and of being attacked in the hall, but he continued, "but I'm glad that you let me be here for you."

"It means the world to me that you did," I replied softly, squeezing him tighter for a moment, which he promptly returned.

We sat there, hugging for what seemed forever before Mori whispered in my ear, "They're probably wondering where we've gone."

"You're probably right," I smiled, pulling back and looking at his face. His smile was real, bigger than I had seen in a long time; the look in his eyes told me he saw the same thing on my face. We stood up, and I cleaned up the pencils I had broken and threw them in the garbage. We didn't say a word, but we did leave that classroom with new reassurances in our hearts; we had learned that trusting to that new degree wasn't as bad as we thought it'd be. With this newfound confidence, we walked back to the nurse's station in search of the newest report of Tamaki's health.