Amaya sat on a late train, watching the sunset through the window. She would reach Boston after dark.
Her meeting with her father astounded her. It was hard to believe that after all this time he was really on her side, but at least this felt more representative of the man her mother had fallen in love with. Amaya still believed her mother had good judgement.
Nervousness bubbled inside her as the train pulled into Boston. She double checked the address on her phone and hailed a cab, which dropped her off in front of an upscale apartment complex. She took a deep breath and walked inside, heading up a set of stairs to the second floor. She heard music coming down the hall; someone was throwing a party. After knocking and finding no response at Haruhi and Tamaki's apartment, she meandered down the hall to find the adjacent ones. She knocked on Kyoya's door, no response. Next door to him was Honey and Takashi, but for the time being she passed it by, not ready to face them yet. Finally, she tried the twins. She discovered that the loud music drifting down the hall was coming from their apartment, but when she knocked there was no answer, either. She tried the door knob and found it unlocked, so she turned it and walked in. Her jaw dropped.
The place was packed. Music was blaring and people were dancing, girls and guys packed close together like sardines in the living room. Amaya felt out of place in her leggings and sneakers amidst the girls in too much make-up, skirts, and heels. All the guys were wearing name-brand button down tops or polos and pastel colored shorts. Everyone was holding red solo cups filled with liquid. These were all rich American kids.
Amaya didn't recognize anyone. Is it really like Hikaru and Kaoru to throw a party like this? she thought. Perhaps the Host Club had switched their business practices with the change in culture. A couple of girls gave her a judgmental look before turning away to gossip, and Amaya suddenly felt self-conscious. She turned toward the kitchen, finally noticing the greek letters on a custom beer pong table. Relief washed over her. I must be in the wrong apartment, she thought.
Before she could leave, two taller guys stepped in front of her. She smelled alcohol on their breath and her stomach recoiled.
"Hey, you okay?" one of the guys asked her. "You're looking a little out of place."
"Yeah," she said warily. "Do Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin live here?"
The boys looked at each other. "You mean that crazy group of Asian kids that moved in?" One of the guys slapped his hand on his head as if everything now made sense. "Of course you're with them!"
Amaya narrowed her eyes. She wasn't fond of being stereotyped.
"Yeah, this isn't their place. The Asian twins live across the way in 223 I think. But hey, you're welcome to stay and party with us for a while, we've got plenty of beer."
"No, I'll pass," she said, "but thanks for the offer."
She turned away from the guys and made her way back to the door, but not before another huge, muscular guy blocked her path.
"Where you think you're going, China doll?"
"Wrong apartment, sorry," she said, giving him a disdainful glare. He flexed in front of her and she could smell the fetid beer on his breath.
"No, beautiful, you're in the right one," he responded, totally ignorant of her body language. "It's your lucky day. I'm fishing and you look like you're ready to be caught."
He tried to put his arm around her, but she ducked under it and twisted out of his reach toward the door, disgusted.
"Hard pass," she said as she slipped out of the apartment. She reached in her bag to pull out her phone so she could double check the apartment numbers that Reiko had sent her.
"Hey!"
She turned just in time to see the big guy stumble out of the party apartment behind her.
"No one walks away from me!" he said loudly. He was heavily intoxicated.
"I just did," she retorted, heading to the stairs to leave the apartment complex altogether. She wasn't about to deal with this.
He reached out his long arm and managed to grab ahold of her hair, yanking her back and flinging her sideways against an apartment door. She grimaced, feeling the doorknob slam into her side. She saw his hand coming, but she couldn't get out of the way before it wrapped around her neck and pinned her against the door.
"What did you just say?" he asked.
Amaya looked into his eyes, which he could hardly keep open. They were glazed over. She recognized something in them, something she knew from her own experience. Amaya had only blacked out a couple of times from her binges, but it was enough to make her realize what she was doing was stupid. There was intense fear the morning after from being unable to remember details of the night before, and with that was always an emptiness in her eyes when she stared at herself in the mirror. She saw that emptiness in this guy's eyes as well, and had a feeling he wouldn't remember this the next day. It didn't make him any less dangerous.
"Amaya-chan?"
A voice she recognized came from further down the hall. The guy who had her pinned to the wall turned his head to see where the sound was coming from. It was his mistake. Amaya kneed him in the groin and pushed him away with enough force that he slammed into the wall behind him. Apparently she hadn't hit him hard enough, or perhaps the alcohol was making him bold, but he swung out his long arms and hit her face. The impact caused her head to fly into the doorjamb and she stumbled, falling to her knees. An intense ringing drowned out all sound as she gasped in pain. In slow motion, she saw styrofoam containers drop to the floor, rice and soup spilling everywhere, as feet came running towards her. One pair of feet blew past her, tackling the drunk guy to the ground.
She tried to turn and speak, but her ears were still ringing. She put her hand to her temples and touched something wet. When she pulled her hand away, there was blood on her fingers. Tamaki and the twins were trying to help her up, but she pulled from their grasp and turned toward Takashi. He was pounding her assailant, who was now unconscious and had a bloodied face as well.
"Takashi!" she yelled, but she couldn't hear her own voice. She grabbed at his hands, trying to keep him from killing the guy who had attacked her. She couldn't stop him from behind, so she tried to get in front of him. People from the party, upon hearing the commotion, were now streaming into the hallway. She saw someone dial three numbers on a cell phone, while someone else was filming the drama.
"Takashi!" she yelled again, her voice still muffled in her own ears. At her voice, he paused long enough for her to push him off. He surveyed the scene and gave the unconscious guy a look of disgust. He stood up and turned his back on Amaya, stalking off down the hall and shaking blood from his hands. Red drops spattered on the white walls as he went. Before she could blink, he had disappeared down the stairwell.
Amaya still sat on her knees, looking at the chaos in every direction. She was lightheaded, but she could see that Haruhi and Honey were both trying to get her attention. She couldn't differentiate their voices from the roar of people in the hallway. She pinched her eyes shut, trying to focus on Honey's voice.
"Is he still breathing?" she thought she asked. Kyoya gave her a confused look, but he leaned down and checked the guy's pulse. He nodded an affirmative.
She sighed in relief, knowing that Takashi wouldn't be charged with murder, before leaning over and throwing up.
"She's got a pretty bad concussion and a bruised rib, but with rest she should be okay. She's passed the danger zone, but if she continues having these symptoms, she needs to see a doctor."
They were all in Takashi and Mitsukuni's apartment, and Amaya was asleep in Takashi's room. The EMT who showed up didn't think she needed to be taken to the hospital, but the other guy had been loaded up into the ambulance and hauled off. The police had taken everyone's statement but Amaya's. When they talked to her after the incident, all she could remember was being thrown twice against the door and the free fall of rice and soup. Thankfully, the apartment complex was swanky enough to have video cameras in all of the hallways, so there would be no question as to what actually happened.
Reiko shut the door after the EMT.
"Well, I suppose we should find something to eat," Haruhi began, stomach growling.
"Already one step ahead of you," Tamaki stated as a new knock came to the door. He opened it, revealing a delivery man with replacements for the food that now decorated the carpet in the hallway.
Kyoya stood at the window, watching the last of the red and blue lights pull out of the parking lot. Takashi came and joined him. While everyone else was filling up plates with food, he was brooding.
"Why did she come here?" he asked, loud enough for the room to hear. He knew that eventually she would come, but he still felt profoundly unprepared at her sudden appearance.
"Ahem," said a quiet voice. "I invited her about a week ago," Reiko admitted. "I thought if she knew I was coming, she would, too. She's not that far away."
"Yes," he said, his face betraying more emotion than usual, "but why now, and why didn't she tell any of us that she was coming? If we were here when she arrived, none of this would have happened."
"She's not that communicative anymore," Kyoya said.
"Yeah," agreed Haruhi. "It's rare that she'll even answer my emails."
Silence and the rustling of chopsticks filled the room.
Takashi suddenly turned on Kyoya. "I thought you said that she was doing fine!" he said quietly. "Are you absolutely sure that nothing like this happened to her while she was traveling?"
"She was doing fine, physically, at least," Kyoya responded, equally concerned about Amaya. "Enough that I didn't feel the need to check in on her after Peru. My bodyguards would have interceded if something like this happened."
"What are you two talking about?" Haruhi asked, biting a piece of shrimp.
Kyoya and Takashi exchanged looks. Takashi answered her. "I'm concerned that something like this may have happened on her travels."
"And I'm assuring him that they didn't," Kyoya told Haruhi, with a tone of voice that told Takashi to shut up.
"Woah, that'd be terrible," Hikaru said.
"But Amaya's super responsible," Kaoru continued.
Kyoya and Takashi exchanged another worried look. They had extensively discussed Amaya's reckless behaviors, and it had taken everything in Takashi's power not to go after her himself.
"Yeah, she certainly kicked your ass," Mitsukuni said, pointing his chopsticks at Takashi.
"Then how did this guy catch her off her guard?" he responded, anger lacing his tone unintentionally. When he saw Amaya hit the wall and collapse like a rag doll, he was so blinded by rage that he would have pounded the guy beyond recognition, if she hadn't stopped him. It was still his worst nightmare, that Amaya would find herself in a situation like this and he wouldn't be there to protect her.
Takashi sat down on the couch and buried his head in his hands. He couldn't help but think that he'd had a large part to play in the behaviors that Amaya had picked up, and he hated feeling like he was helpless. Everything he'd worked hard for over the past year felt like it was falling to pieces. His precarious balance was on the verge of collapse.
Tamaki put his hand on Takashi's shoulder, pushing a plate of food into his hands. "You'll feel better after you eat," he said. "And remember, she's here. She came. That says a lot."
Later that evening, after everyone had retired, Takashi found that he couldn't sleep. It didn't help that the couch was a little too small for him, but his mind played the situation in the hallway over and over again. Drifting in and out of this scene were the highs and lows of the past year. What a long year it had been. After Amaya left Tokyo, he felt crushed. He had fought so hard for her, only to lose. Although losing to Amaya had seemed the best scenario at the time, her decision to leave left him devastated. It was so final and so sudden that he was left with an intense emptiness. The worst part was that, with the hand the Haninozuka's played, he felt trapped with no way out of the nightmare. There were very few times in his life when he had felt out of options. The last time he could remember was when his mother died. It, too, was sudden, final, and left him empty with no way to get her back.
But once again, it was his best friend, Mitsukuni, who helped pull him out of the dark. Takashi had watched Mitsukuni grow that year, ever becoming the mediator between the battling members in their families. Mitsukuni convinced him that there was still something worth fighting for, that Amaya's decision didn't dictate the end of it all. So, Takashi kept moving forward. His battle for Amaya started with a focus on his schooling and in finding a way out of his marriage. Takashi respected Amaya's decision to leave too much to go after her himself, but he still needed to know that she was safe, so he asked Kyoya to follow her.
Takashi rolled over on the couch and groaned. If Amaya found out, she'd be so angry at the breach in privacy, but he still felt bad for lying to her.
Another immediate situation weaseled its way into his head. His impending marriage to Minyung, the Korean heiress, was another predicament altogether. Why the Haninozuka elders had chosen her, he had no idea. There were so many reasons why the match was bad, although he supposed the few benefits were large enough to entice both her family and his.
Their meetings were less than enjoyable. It was clear from all parties that the marriage was a business deal, and both he and Minyung were expected to fulfill their duties for the good of their families. In Takashi's case, he had no choice. His grandparents had signed a binding contract with the Haninozuka family. It wasn't truly binding, since Takashi had autonomy since coming of age, but it certainly stipulated legitimacy to becoming head of the family.
Head of the family. Takashi and Mitsukuni had dreamed of being the heads of their families since they were children. Throughout the past year, they'd talked together extensively about the issues that plagued the Haninozuka and Morinozuka families. They knew what they would change once they were at the helm, but that necessitated that both Mitsukuni AND Takashi were patriarchs...which at the moment, meant no Amaya.
Takashi couldn't give up on that dream that he shared with his best friend, but neither could he forget about girl that he loved. He felt that she would be the perfect partner for his future and would be more of an asset to their family than Minyung, but the prejudice against her birth was enough to negate that, according to the older generation of the family.
However, for the past few months, a nagging feeling at the back of his mind kept telling him that there was another way forward. He sat up on the couch, pushing his fingers through his hair and sighing.
He got up and went to his bedroom, quietly opening the door. Amaya was still sleeping peacefully. He watched her for a second before walking over to his desk and sitting down. He flipped on a small light and woke up his desktop computer to keep working. He had a huge number of tabs open on his web browser, all relating to Japanese law, some historical documents about the Haninozuka and Morinozuka families, and his fiancé's family background. He slid on a pair of glasses and started reading. He was looking for anything and everything that could point toward a reason for his impending marriage to fail...anything to keep him from marrying Minyung. Three months in, however, and he had found no holes.
At about 3 AM he heard a rustling behind him.
"She's pretty," Amaya said softly.
Takashi frowned, then realized that his fiancé Minyung's picture was open in a window on his computer screen. He sighed, closed the tab, and swiveled around in his chair to look at her. She was as beautiful as he remembered, if not more. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, he thought ruefully. Her hair had grown back, and despite the bandage on her forehead, her features looked more prominent and defined. What struck him, though, were her eyes. He had always been awed by her eyes, so inquisitive and full of admiration. They were always expressive, giving away her every emotion. Now, though, they looked naturally wary, jaded. They were the same eyes, those Haninozuka eyes, but they had lost their light.
"You don't need to hide her from me," Amaya said, pushing herself up on the bed and wincing. "Do you have any painkillers?"
He pointed to the bedside table, where a bottle of acetaminophen and a glass of water waited for her. She gulped the pills down eagerly.
"Since when do you wear glasses?" she asked.
He took the glasses off of his face and looked at them before setting them aside. "I don't," he replied. "These filter out blue light to prevent strain. How do you feel?"
"Like my head got smashed with a ton of bricks," she said. "But honestly, I've felt worse."
They sat in silence, neither one knowing what to say.
"How have you been?" she finally asked, a little hesitantly.
He didn't answer her immediately. He debated how to answer. Should he still be angry? His anger at her dissipated a long time ago, when he forgave her for leaving. Should he be apologetic? About their predicament, his impending marriage, for basically spying on her for a year? Yes, but not yet. Should he act as if nothing had changed? Acknowledge all of his feelings and kiss her right then and there? The ensuing situation would leave Amaya wide open once again for the scrutiny of his family. No, not that. And in truth, how had he been doing the past year? Maybe he should start with the truth.
"Not well," he said. "You?"
"Pretty terrible." She took a deep breath and paused.
"I think I made a mistake," she said, a frown on her face. She flung back the blankets. "I shouldn't have come here," she said, standing up. As soon as she stood, she wobbled a little, dizzy from the concussion and immediate rush to the head.
Takashi was out of his chair in an instant, holding on to her to make sure she didn't fall over. Her eyes were scrunched together as she tried not to cry. "I don't want to feel this anymore," she whispered, her voice cracking.
"Feel what?" Takashi asked, sitting her back down on the bed and holding her close.
"I was supposed to let you go," she said. "I was supposed to move on. That's what leaving was for."
"Then why did you come?"
She glanced at him sheepishly. He lifted his eyebrows, prompting her on. She spilled the entire story about her father's visit and how he encouraged her to see him. "It was so strange," she said. "I can't believe I listened to him. It has just turned into a mess, like everything else I touch."
Amaya looked up and angrily wiped tears from her eyes. "I knew I would feel this way, but I came anyway. Everyone has moved on and life is perfect. You're all studying abroad together thanks to the fact that Haruhi and Tamaki are in love. Mitsukuni and Reiko are a happy couple, and you've got a beautiful fiancé. I'm trying and failing to move on with my life, and I obviously don't belong anymore."
"Amaya," Takashi said softly, concerned by her lack of confidence in herself. This was not the Amaya he remembered leaving. She was broken down, convinced that she meant nothing to anyone, and full of regret. He wished he could eloquently tell her how beautiful she was, but he never had the right words to say.
Instead, he tilted her face upwards and met her lips with his to stifle her tears. He held her there longer than he intended, caught up in the sweetness of her lips. When he broke away, he saw the bewildered expression on her face.
"I didn't say I was doing well, either," he explained. "You will always belong." I should have reached out sooner, he thought to himself as he pulled her closer in an embrace. "You still have friends who love you."
He held her in silence for a moment while she mulled over his words. He was savoring the touch of her lips. It just felt right.
"If..." she began hesitantly. "If you still feel that way...why didn't you ever come after me?"
"I couldn't," he said, but I was with you the whole time.
"Why not?" Amaya asked. "Because of her?" She nodded to the computer screen. "Are you really happy with her?"
"You made the decision to leave, Amaya. 'It's my turn to protect you,' you said. I needed to respect that, even if I didn't like it." He buried his face in her hair, breathing in the faint scent of cherry blossoms. "Amaya, had you contacted me just once, I would have dropped everything and found you."
Suddenly, her shoulders began to shake. Takashi knew she was starting to sob. She pushed away from him and stood up again. Still in tears, she got her bag and pulled out a stack of letters that she tossed toward him.
Takashi looked at the stack, frowning. He untied the twine that held them neatly together, flipping through them slowly. All the letters were sealed, stamped, and addressed...to him. There were easily over twenty in the stack.
"I couldn't bring myself to send them," she said, barely more than a whisper. "I didn't think that you'd want to see me or hear from me after I left."
He stared at her, wondering how much could have been avoided if they hadn't had this egregious miscommunication. He looked down at the letters, noticing a small date in the corner of each letter by the stamp. He moved back to his desk, quickly finding the earliest date. It was dated the day after the family summit. He flipped it over and started to rip open the envelope, then paused.
"May I?" he asked, looking to where Amaya still stood. She nodded.
Takashi finished opening the missive and began fervently reading. When he reached the end of the first letter, he turned around, but Amaya was gone. He had been so engrossed in her words that he didn't hear her leave the room. He had so many questions for her, but instead he searched for the next letter, slicing the envelope open.
Had anyone overheard Takashi in those early morning hours, they would have hardly recognized him as the silent, reserved type. The letters that he read, one after another, elicited such a response from him that he became quite vocal, laughing out loud, crying audibly, and producing a variety of short exclamations. Some might suspect that exhaustion played a small part in his emotional response to Amaya's writing, but they would be wrong. The next day, he would remember the content of those letters in crisp detail.
Takashi finished the last letter, only then realizing that the sun was starting rising. He glanced at his clock; it was just after 6 AM. He looked over the scattered envelopes on his desk. She's perfect, he thought to himself. The letters were so incredibly intimate that Takashi felt like he had been with her on her travels. He felt like he knew her again, and despite her current lack of confidence, he had fallen in love with her more deeply than before. He felt the dire urge to protect her and to keep her safe once again.
The very first letter was riddled with heartbreak, but also confidence in the decision she had made to let him go. She had never wanted to make him choose between her or his family, and her intention was to protect him from feeling guilt over either decision. It was a truly admirable thing. In the following letters, however, he could see that doubt in her decision seeped into her mind. Small conversations with people in shops or observations of interactions between people on the streets throughout the countries that she visited often made her reflect on love, happiness, self-worth, sadness, broken hearts, and life's purpose. Her frequent binges were a result of not just heartbreak, but of an existential crisis with no outlet and no support. Her writing, although still detailing the beauty and intricacies of culture in each place she visited, grew pessimistic as the months continued. She grew lonely. She learned of the importance of interactions with people, and more than once a small word from a stranger stopped her from picking up another drink or doing something she would later regret.
The last letter was a reflection on the beauty of sorrow. 'There's something beautiful in the pain,' she wrote, 'Knowing that I've loved so fiercely to hurt this much...it's incredible knowing that I am capable of that kind of love. I've seen so many who have been faced with adversity so severe that they feel they can't go on, and yet they still find something worth living for. My mother, for example. If this is what she felt when she ripped herself away from my father for his own well-being, then she is a better woman than I. She was able to find the blossoms of hope within the most barren of places. Perhaps someday I'll find that type of hope.'
Suddenly, Takashi stood from his chair, a surge of worry ripping through him. Amaya had left the room three hours ago and he didn't know where she was.
He burst from his room, scanning the apartment for her. She wasn't in the living room. He checked the front door. It was still locked, so she hadn't left. He glanced out toward the balcony and sighed in relief. She was curled up and bundled in a blanket, sitting on the double chaise lounge chair that Mitsukuni had insisted on purchasing for their apartment. She was sipping a steaming cup of tea and watching the sun rise. He stepped out onto the balcony, joining her.
"I wish I had followed you," he said, gazing out across the colors that were streaming light into the darkness.
Amaya didn't answer him. I should tell her... he thought.
"I sent Kyoya instead."
This admission caused Amaya to turn sharply toward him. "What?" she asked.
"I asked Kyoya if he would follow you," Takashi admitted, embarrassed. "He had one of his bodyguards trailing you after Russia."
"Oh," came her response, followed by more silence. She turned back toward the sunshine. Takashi was confused. He had expected her to be angry for violating her privacy, but she seemed resigned.
"Thank you," she finally said.
"Why?" he asked, this time turning to look at her.
"To be honest, I've missed your protectiveness. I know I'm capable of doing a lot of things on my own..."
"You certainly kicked my ass..." Takashi interjected, repeating Mitsukuni's statement from earlier.
"I certainly did," she agreed, laughing a little. "But there's a difference. I realized, somewhere along the way, that you protected me not because I was weak and because I needed it, but because you actually care.
"I did a lot of stupid things abroad," she continued. "Mostly hoping you would show up like you always do." She looked away, a slight smile gracing her face. "But this means that you were always there. I should have known."
Takashi looked at her, taking in the radiance of her face as the sunlight poured over the balcony. His heart started fluttering at the look in her eyes, and he felt the urge to kiss her again. As he leaned forward, he heard the door to the balcony slide open. He pulled back abruptly to find that Mitsukuni was joining them.
"You two are up early."
"Takashi didn't actually sleep," Amaya said, a smirk on her face as she glanced at Mitsukuni.
"You've really been up all night, Takashi?" Mitsukuni asked, rubbing his sleepy eyes in the most adorable way. Seeing his friend so vulnerable made Takashi's heart melt, and he scooted closer to Amaya so that Mitsukuni could join them on the lounge chair.
"The couch isn't long enough for me," he said blandly. Mitsukuni giggled.
The three of them watched the sunrise in silence, and Takashi felt contentment in his heart. He was sitting between the two people he loved most in life, and for that moment, everything felt right with the world.
After the sun reached a point above the horizon, Mitsukuni yawned. "I think I'm gonna go back to bed," he said. "You two should get some sleep too. Haru-chan and Tama-chan want to go to the farmer's market this afternoon before they shut down for the winter."
Amaya leaned her head on Takashi's shoulder, stifling a yawn herself.
"How are you feeling?" he asked her, noting that the bandage on her forehead needed to be changed.
"Happy, for once," she said. "I wish it could be this way all the time."
"Me too," he replied. "We should sleep."
"Ok."
Takashi took her hand in his and led her to his bedroom, where she immediately crawled into her original position. Much to her surprise, he pulled the comforter back and climbed in the bed after her, curling his own body around hers and wrapping her in his arms. He felt her heartbeat quicken.
"You're not staying on the couch?" she asked.
"Would you prefer that I did?"
She giggled nervously. "No."
"Goodnight, Amaya."
"Good morning, Takashi."
The two fell asleep within minutes.
Takashi woke in the early afternoon feeling much more refreshed. Amaya was no longer in the bed, so he stood and stretched his long limbs, yawning. The apartment sounded quiet, and when he went to the kitchen he found a note saying that Amaya, Reiko, and Mitsukuni had gone to the farmer's market without him. He went back to his room and took a hot shower, rinsing the weariness from his bones. He pulled on a pair of jeans and a plain black shirt when he heard the door open and familiar voices fill the apartment once again.
He walked out of his room, drying his hair with a towel. Amaya caught his eye and smiled. He grinned. She had this way of being beautiful even when she looked terrible. The bandage was gone from her forehead, revealing a dark scab, and the area around one of her eyes was definitely turning black. However, her eyes were no longer jaded. They were bright again, just like he remembered. He adored it.
"Mori-senpai, you're finally awake!" Haruhi exclaimed, giving him a smile. "We thought we'd make pizzas with the fresh vegetables we bought today."
Takashi's stomach grumbled loudly in response.
Tamaki scoffed, crossing his arms and tapping his foot. "I don't understand how you think arugula is an appropriate pizza topping," he told her. "Nobody wants to eat a salad on top of their pizza."
"The Italians sure seemed to like it," Amaya said.
The door opened again and in popped the twins with Kyoya in tow.
"We heard you're making pizza?" Hikaru and Kaoru said in unison.
"I hope you bought arugula," Kyoya stated, pushing his glasses up his nose before crossing his arms. "I'm such a fan of arugula and prosciutto on pizza."
Haruhi stuck her tongue out at Tamaki.
"I want lots of black olives on mine," Reiko stated. "And no cheese."
"Put Reiko-chan's extra cheese on mine!" giggled Mitsukuni.
"What if everyone just makes their own pizza?" Haruhi asked, pulling out flour to make the dough. "It'll just be easier that way."
Amaya helped Haruhi in the kitchen, shooing away the boys who had no idea what they were doing. They made a huge batch of dough and sat down, waiting for it to rise.
"Amaya-chan, I want to hear more about your travels!" Mitsukuni said, plopping down on the couch next to her.
"Okay," she smiled. "What do you want to know? I feel like all of you are world travelers yourselves..."
"Hardly," Haruhi said drily. "They certainly don't travel like you do."
"Have any of you stayed in a hostel before?" Amaya asked.
"What's a hostel?" Hikaru wondered.
Amaya launched into hostel story after hostel story, telling them about the people she met and the adventures she went on until all the pizzas were made and baked. Tamaki in particular seemed both enthralled and horrified at the types of 'conditions' that Amaya had spent her time in, but she insisted that it was the only true way to experience a culture.
Takashi smiled to himself, enjoying the way that Amaya grew animated when she was passionate about something. She was happy, and he was thrilled to see joy in her eyes once again. This was the way it was supposed to be.
They sat together at the table, eating and exchanging stories of times traveling abroad, fully content. At the end of the meal, Amaya excused herself to go to use the bathroom and slipped into Takashi's room. He was clearing the table when an angry knock came to the door. Everyone in the room paused.
Takashi answered the door. He blinked in surprise, totally lost for words. His fiancé was standing at the door, with two body guards in tow. "Damn it..." he muttered. I can't believe I forgot.
"Yeah, damn it," she said, a disgruntled look on her face. "You know what day it is, right?"
"September 10," he replied. He ground his teeth together and grimaced. Inside his head, strings of profanity shouted themselves at the walls of his skull, but he dared not let another one slip. It was September 10, the date set aside for his next 'courtship' meeting with Minyung. He had completely spaced it with Amaya's arrival. He was supposed to have met her at the airport, and they were supposed to be dining together by now. He wondered why she hadn't called him, but then remembered that his phone was still on his desk in the bedroom.
"I called," she said, as if reading his mind. "Five times. Thank you, for so kindly welcoming me to Boston," she stated sarcastically, stepping past him and into the apartment. She looked at the empty dishes on the table. "I see you forgot about our dinner plans."
"I apologize," he said stiffly.
"Minyung! I didn't know you were coming to Boston," Mitsukuni said, stepping forward with his most welcoming face on, trying to dispel the tension she had created. He glanced hesitantly at Takashi. "Would you like something to drink?"
"No, thank you," she said, glancing around the apartment and finding it to her distaste. "I can't believe you live here. I never would have considered that you'd choose somewhere where blood and vomit lines the halls." She looked to each member of the Host Club before turning back to Takashi. "Well? Why are we still standing here? You have the agenda for the evening, certainly?" Displeasure dripped through every word.
Takashi nodded, glancing toward his bedroom. Amaya had yet to emerge. "Let me change," he said.
"I can't believe you're going to be my husband," she muttered.
Likewise... he thought.
He quickly walked to his bedroom, quietly shutting the door behind him. When he turned around, Amaya was standing there, a blank expression on her face. Her eyes were wide and fearful, once again filled with the darkness he longed to dispel. It made his heart crumble as the perfect afternoon was smashed to pieces. He knew he didn't have a lot of time before Minyung wondered what he was up to, but he needed to right this situation somehow. He did the first thing that came to mind. He took Amaya by the shoulders and forced her eyes to meet his.
"I love you," he said, firmly and fiercely. After a long moment he let go, quickly searching his closet for an appropriate outfit and tossing the one he wanted on his bed. He pulled a dark blue button-down over his black T-shirt, fumbling with the buttons and swearing out loud. He was nervous, and anxiety rushed through him as he considered how he would ever fix this situation. Tears sprang to his own eyes as he considered how hopeless the situation actually was. He groaned in frustration and anger, dropping his hands as he considered giving up. I couldn't have chosen a better way to disappoint Amaya. How did I forget that she was coming today?!
"Takashi," Amaya whispered, walking toward him. She gently took his hand in hers, squeezing it and giving him the most reassuring look she could muster. It didn't convince him. She started buttoning his shirt for him, her hands moving deftly where his had failed. "Tuck it in," she commanded. She turned back to the closet while he obliged. She returned with a tie, which she skillfully twisted into a half-winsor, and handed him a vest.
"Roll up your sleeves," she whispered. She once again went to the closet for a pair of dress shoes, tossing them to him, and finally returned with a pocket square. When he was dressed, he stood up.
"You look dapper."
"Amaya," he said, wishing to erase this whole stain from their weekend together. "I-"
"I love you, too," she said, cutting him off and giving him a small smile.
He kissed her forehead and left the room, giving her a final glance. Upon exiting, Minyung gave him a once over, looking bored. "No accessories?" she asked.
Takashi sighed and turned on his heel back to his bedroom.
"Accessories?" Amaya whispered, exasperated at this woman who was supposed to be Takashi's fiancé. "The pocket square isn't enough?"
Takashi opened the top drawer of his dresser, revealing a choice of watches. Staring at them, a thought popped into his head, along with a hint of confidence. He fastened a watch on his wrist and turned toward her.
"How long would you wait for me?" he asked slowly, thoughts continuing to form and churn in his head.
"For you, forever," she breathed, not even hesitating.
Takashi blinked, then smiled. "I would never ask you to wait forever," he told her. "What about four years?"
Amaya frowned, confused. "What are you talking about? You're supposed to marry when you graduate."
It was true. Takashi was to marry Minyung after he graduated, but he intended that timeline to include his graduate degree in law. However, the scenario that he imagined in his head looked drastically different.
"I'm not marrying Minyung," he stated. A surge of confidence at the statement sent a rush of blood to his head.
Amaya stared at him, awed. Tendrils of nervous anticipation unfurled inside of her. "How?!" she exclaimed loudly. She clapped her hands over her mouth in fear, but Takashi pretended to cough, covering up the noise. Amaya bit her lip and looked away, trying not to laugh.
"I don't know..." he admitted, smiling. "But I'm going to find a way. I fought for you once, and I lost. I'm not going to lose you again." He pulled her close to him once more, giving her a bold and daring kiss before leaving the room for the last time.
A/N: Thank you for reading this chapter! This chapter was really difficult to write because this really marks the start of the final arc, and I've had a couple of ideas for the ending. But go figure, three-quarters of the way into this chapter a third, and what I think is a more organic, idea for the end popped into my head and then I rewrote most of this to reflect that. I now have plans for three more chapters (covering four years) and an epilogue. Thanks as always for sticking through this with me.
I hope this gave some more insight into Takashi's perspective. I know it's not the most detailed perspective of the year from the Haninozuka/Morinozuka standpoints, but I felt we needed to see the resolution between Amaya and her beau. The next chapter should describe some of the other family perspectives, as they'll all be thrown together again. Also, don't go hatin' on Minyung quite yet...she's got her own set of demons she's dealing with.
Thank you so much to everyone who followed, favorited, and reviewed! Shoutouts to BlackDove WhiteDove, Mamabug, gossamermouse101, Avalongirl55, slucky13, AmericanNidiot, and Elizabeth B-Lover. You all make me feel good about writing. I'm glad I have such a nice audience to practice my storytelling with!