This is one of the final Kenji chapters and I really hope I've made it work. From here, it will be only a brief mention of him and then on with the story which will also end soon. Still, I hope you like this chapter but please let me know either way? Many thanks :)

DISCLAIMER: I do not own KHR nor do I claim any rights to it or any of the characters or locations in this fan fiction chapter that you may recognise from the anime/manga. I am only responsible for the plot and the OC and nothing else.

"And now as we release these new youthful minds into the wide world, may they change it to become a better place. Congratulations to you all!"

The applause rang throughout the entire hall and the audience was on its feet with celebration. Haru smiled proudly as friends and classmates kissed and hugged her and shared in her joy. At last, she had graduated. Her parents had even managed to show up for this day which was a bit of a rarity. They still had to fly out that very night, but it made the day all the more special.

She hugged them both and thanked them then turned to her other friends who each congratulated her in turn. It was one of the happiest days of her life so far and she couldn't stop the tears of joy that sprung to her eyes. She had worked really hard for this moment and from now on, she was one of them.

She noticed, as she turned to look at the smiling faces around her, that the one she had wanted to see the most was not there. It was to be expected though. Her fiancé was a man who loved his privacy and hated crowds. Given the group that had showed up that day, it was really no wonder. Well, that and the fact that he had been sent away on a mission and hadn't been around for two whole weeks.

In the corner of her eyes though, she did catch the gleam of grey eyes and then the smile beneath it. She shook her head but thanked each of the Vongola members and their respective spouses for coming to her graduation.

The after party was to be held in the Vongola mansion and it was all Haru could do to keep from collapsing into a sobbing weepy mass at how thoughtful her friends were. The congratulations kept coming as did the gifts and the champagne. It was a time to celebrate! The dress she had specifically picked out for this evening was particularly stunning. One of her former classmates had used her as a model for their practical and had made that dress for her. Haru couldn't have been prouder to wear such a lovely dress.

It was a knee-length blue satin dress with off-the-shoulder sleeves and a complementary bow around her waist and to her side. The A-line skirt flowed down from her waist to her knees in perfect form. On her feet was a matching pair of open-toed heels decorated with little past diamonds. Around her wrist and in her ears were silver earrings and a necklace with a sapphire pendant in the shape of a teardrop.

Everyone present at the party commented on how absolutely stunning she was and she politely accepted their praise moving around the room as she tried to mingle with everyone. The fact that each of these people had come to see her and celebrate this day with her made her very happy. But even so, Haru couldn't help wishing that Hibari would at least make a technical appearance.

Just outside the crowd, she caught the silhouette of a lone figure watching her. It moved off the wall and disappeared into the darkness of the night through the balcony doors not far from where it had been standing. She made her way to the doors with a little sigh. She would have had to face him eventually.

"Congratulations," said Kenji holding out a bright red rose to her. Haru accepted it and smiled at him.

"Don't you want to join the party?" she asked looking back at the others. Lambo (who had somehow been forced into a suit – a fact that he made no pretence about hating) was running through the room with I-pin chasing him as fast as her (very cute) Chinese dress would allow her. Bianchi looked to be handing a platter of her special cookies to Tsuna who started to look a little green for some reason.

Gokudera and Yamamoto were having an argument, one-sided though it seemed to be. Hana and Chrome were not very far behind them and Ryohei was now joining Yamamoto and Gokudera. It was normal for the Vongola to have some disagreements. They would never be perfect and Haru had made her peace with that, but she loved seeing her friends happy.

"I think the rest of that crowd will enjoy the fact that I am not present."

"It was nice of you to come," she said smiling at him. It was not mere pleasantry either. She really meant it. For what had to be the billionth time that month, he thought to himself how perfect she was for him and held his own as she turned to look out into the night sky. After a moment, she turned her gaze to the ring on her finger and her smile turned wistful.

Of course she would be thinking about him. It always came right back to that, didn't it?

He would try one last time.

"Haru-chan," he said very gently. She turned to him and he raised a hand to her cheek. She held his gaze for only a moment more then she reached up to lay her hand over his. She held it in both of her own and never once took her eyes off of his.

He understood. From that simple gesture, he knew that he would never have her. Even if he somehow managed to steal her away, her heart would never be his and though that had never before mattered to him, he felt the stab. Still he smiled and squeezed her hands with his own before pulling it loose.

"What is it you see in him? As long as I've known Kyoya, he's had the emotional balance of a rock. He never did anything but scowl and keep to himself..."

Kenji sighed and crossed his arms leaning back against the railing.

"I have noticed a change in him though but I doubt that was there before you came. Or am I wrong?" he asked. Haru chanced a look in his direction and then she returned her gaze to her fingers. She hadn't thought of it that way...

"Ah, how troublesome. I must be going soft," he said and pushed away from the railing. He gave Haru one last long look and then raised his hand and patted her head. "I know when I'm beaten. Goodnight Haru-chan."

Haru watched him leave then turned her attention to the night sky. Somehow, whenever Kenji was leaving, she felt as if she had broken a very tiny piece of her heart. She probably had, but it wasn't enough to change her mind about who she wanted to be with. Smiling to herself, she turned and walked back into the house with a grin on her face.

Her fiancé was coming home soon.

*.*.*.*.*.*.*

Haru was walking in the hallway nervously. She hadn't seen Hibari in two whole weeks and their last meeting had been interesting. She walked into the kitchen in her robe to get a glass of milk before she went to bed. She warmed her milk and poured it into a glass. She had not seen Hibari all day and she didn't know if he would even make it back to Namimori that night. She had moved back to her room since he'd left not liking the idea of using his while he was gone. It looked like she would spend another night in her bed.

She finished her milk and went to wash her glass when Hibari himself stepped into the kitchen. Haru acknowledged his presence in silence and continued washing her glass. Behind her, Hibari watched her rinse the glass and reach for the towel. He reached for her at the same time, his hands settling rather nicely on her waist. She couldn't see the pleased smirk on his face.

Haru gasped realising that he was behind her. She squeezed her eyes shut for a moment willing the thundering in her heart to still so that she could form a coherent thought. The first one that she managed to form was a plan of escape. Haru turned slowly and faced Hibari. Bright grey met brown and the banked fires behind each flared to life. For one agonisingly long moment, Haru contemplated reaching up and kissing him herself but she thought that just this once, she might try to make one attempt – futile though it might prove to be – to escape him.

She had missed him like madness and she wanted nothing more than to melt in his arms. The gleam in his eyes had scared her a little although it promised a whole new kind of adventure. She still had her morals, much as they failed to apply right now, and she should at least, for decency's sake of course, try to protect her virtue.

Pulling away from him, Haru walked to the door and paused just long enough to make sure he was watching her, and he was. She turned the corner and went up the corridor heading back up to her room. There she may have been safe. If she locked the door, which she did, she wouldn't have to deal with him tonight and that flame behind his eyes. Her pulse leapt at the thought of what would have happened had she remained in the kitchen.

He had kissed her enough times before but the intensity of that gaze had her thoughts careening to edges she had never contemplated before. If she had stayed, his lips would be her undoing... Would he understand and leave her be? Would he silently go back to bed and not say anything despite the temporary separation?

She leaned against her door and shut her eyes trying to calm her nerves as they clamoured to make sense of her feelings.

The knock came and Haru's breath stilled. She had expected him to come after her but it didn't lessen the thrumming of the blood in her veins. She took a deep breath and unlocked the door opening it to look at him.

Their eyes only had to meet for the jolt to run through her, screaming all her nerves to attention. Her breathing shallowed as thoughts came to her, unbidden and made her mouth go dry. She blinked up at him and he met her gaze steadily, those grey orbs pinning her in place then entrancing her and she took a step back as he took one forward.

"I... why are you here?" she asked, her voice betraying the emotion boiling up inside her. She knew perfectly well why he was there. He raised a hand to her cheek and she stifled a squeak. She couldn't move and didn't particularly want to. He hadn't been in her room since the morning he had told her about his grandfather's death.

Now the air was different. It seemed taut; so eager and ready to snap...

Haru licked her lips and that one simple action started it all. In a moment, she was in his arms and in the next, she was against the door. Her arms wrapped around him and her lips gave as good as they got. She kissed him back with a fierce hunger that surprised even him. She wasn't meant to be this vicious, this deliciously dominating, this audaciously daring...

He took back his power with one swift move as he swept her up into his arms. Her hands still clung to his neck and she let herself be carried down the hall to his room. It was time to stop this foolish game. It didn't seem to be productive at all, and either way, he still managed to get her into his bed no matter her decision, not that she really minded. He had missed her and he would be damned if he spent the night alone.

When he set her gently on his mattress, he looked down at her for a long time and she waited for his next move with bated breath. Hibari fought with his better judgement and it won in the end. He wouldn't take her tonight. Haru was not ready for it. When she was ready, he would take his time with her and make her understand the torture she was putting him through by tempting him so much... but not tonight.

He leaned over and kissed her forehead then cradled her against him with her back to his front as they always did. Mixed feelings of disappointment and relief danced through her as she settled more comfortably against him.

"Some day, Kotori," he said gently in her ear making her jump a little.

Then he settled down behind her and his breathing slowly evened out. Haru remained awake a while longer pondering her feelings.

Something had changed tonight. The kiss was no longer innocent and careful as if she were treading on eggshells. If anything, she now felt like she belonged to him more than at any other time since she had come to his room that first night. She touched her lips and flushed remembering just how eager she was to have him kiss her.

No, it wasn't the same kind of kiss.

It was decidedly better.