Chapter 6: Pains and pbj's - by Tigyr

Tachibana thought about the two young people he'd just dropped off at the Ootori summerhouse. Kyoya would be fine; he knew that because he'd talked to the school doctor before driving them anywhere. Kyoya would have a headache and that was the main concern right now. Getting the medication to his master before he took his frustrations out on Haruhi. As for Haruhi, he was a little concerned about her. He made a mental note to double check the security cameras in the host club just to make sure that she was okay. He'd noticed the slight headache she seemed to have been developing and called the school to verify whether or not she was allergic to any medications. Under normal circumstances there would have been a doctor/patient confidentiality clause. Since Tachibana and the school doctor were both Ootori employees, the exception was being made, at least in Haruhi's case.

Satisfied that Haruhi could take the same medication that Kyoya did, Tachibana asked the doctor to call in a prescription for both young people.

"Two separate ones, Tachibana?"

"We'd better, just in case the Master isn't around when she needs them. I'm sure that we can call her father and get his approval if we need to."

The doctor looked at Haruhi's medical file and saw that her father had already signed his approval for any prescription or over the counter medication, providing the doctor recommended it. Then he saw the note written on the side.

"Tachibana, I'm sending something the young Master will take note of and I think you should too."

"Is it something Master Kyoya needs to see right away, or can I just relay it to him later?" Tachibana knew that Kyoya would be getting temperamental and didn't want Haruhi to be the one to bear the brunt of his Master's brusqueness.

"You can relay it after the headache subsides, but I do recommend showing him this information." The doctor's words, the urgency in his tone, made Tachibana frown, but he accepted the information, and then went to the pharmacy to get the prescriptions. As he waited for the prescriptions to be filled, Tachibana opened up the email and inhaled. This was definitely something that Kyoya needed to know, and it explained Haruhi's sudden headache as well.

Kyoya watched from the sofa as Haruhi made them both a cup of tea. He could tell, even through his own throbbing headache that she had a headache too, or was in the process of getting one. He wanted to say something, but what could he say?

"Here, I hope it helps you feel better." He looked up just as she handed him the cup and saucer.

"Thank you."

Two simple words, and she smiled. Despite the pain he was feeling, he could see that those two words held a meaning he might never be able to understand.

"You're welcome, Kyoya-senpai." Haruhi started to leave, but he put a hand out.

"You can sit down, I promise not to bite." She didn't protest as much as she normally would have and that's when he knew that she was in pain too. He didn't know why she had a headache, but it didn't matter. What mattered was that Tachibana needed to know. Before he could do anything, Haruhi handed him a half of a sandwich and he stared at it in wonder.

"You didn't have much in the kitchen, but there was a loaf of bread along with some peanut butter and jelly. You should eat something before Tachibana brings back your medicine."

Peanut butter and jelly? Normally Kyoya would scoff at such a thing, but she made sense and it was true; he hadn't had much to eat at all. No, he hadn't had anything since he'd skipped breakfast to come in early and talk to Haruhi about her club duties. Then the accident had happened and when Tamaki had found him, it had been just before noon; he hadn't felt like eating since then. He watched her as she bit into her own sandwich, before he picked up his and started nibbling on it.

Memories of a sunshiny day, a picnic with his childhood friend, made him close his eyes and smile and the girl seated across from him inhaled softly as a peaceful look overcame his features. Admittedly, she'd only known him a few days, but the look of serenity that crossed his face as he ate his sandwich and drank his tea, made her wonder just who the real Kyoya Ootori was.

The two ate in silence and Haruhi was about to pick up the dishes when Kyoya reached out a hand.

"Stop and sit." He paused for a few seconds, then added, "please."

Tachibana drove quickly, and carefully once he had the prescriptions he needed. He knew that Kyoya would be needing his medication, but he also knew that Haruhi could stand her ground with the young master. What he didn't know was whether or not Haruhi's headache had manifested to a full blown pain or not and that worried the bodyguard. His master was normally quite observant about such things, but when Kyoya was in pain, he didn't always tend to notice others moods or emotions.

He parked the car and quietly let himself into the house. To his surprise, there was no shouting or crying going on. In fact he couldn't hear anything, which was surprising, considering how bad Kyoya's headache had been before he had left.

He peeked into the kitchen, but the only thing out of the ordinary was the loaf of bread on the counter along with a jar of peanut butter. He looked in the sink and found some cold dishwater, but there were no dirty dishes. There was a saucer and what looked like a table knife in the drying rack that he didn't think had been there prior to his leaving.

He went into the living room and stopped in his tracks. Two empty saucers and two empty tea cups were on the coffee table. There was a small plate that had a few crumbs left on it, apparently from at least one sandwich. Kyoya was laying on one of the sofas, apparently asleep. He had his school jacket draped over his chest and was clutching the necklace that meant so much to him. Kyoya's glasses were on the table next to one of the cups. What surprised the bodyguard was that Haruhi was asleep on the other sofa. The young girl was covered with a light blanket that Tachibana recognized as the one that normally rested at the foot of Kyoya's bed.

He wondered what had transpired in his absence. He wrote out a note for Kyoya, explaining that he would return after he took Haruhi home. He placed the note under Kyoya's glasses then he lightly tapped Haruhi on her foot. The girl woke up instantly, and Tachibana smiled at her as he put a finger to his lips and pointed to Kyoya. The girl nodded, rubbed her eyes and stared at the blanket that was draped over her. Clearly she didn't remember it being placed there. Tachibana took the blanket and placed it carefully over the still sleeping boy, then motioned for Haruhi to follow him.

Once they were outside and headed to the car, Tachibana apologized for not getting back as soon as he had hoped.

"I am sorry it took so long to get back, miss. Did anything happen?"

"I managed to get him to eat half of a sandwich, and he drank some tea. We talked for a bit and then, I think I fell asleep." She rubbed her head and Tachibana looked at her.

"Do you need anything before we go back to Tokyo? I can get you some aspirin or something."

He thought about the prescription that he had in the limo, but Haruhi glanced around as she climbed into the back of the car, and shook her head. "No, the nap helped. I was just surprised that I fell asleep. I don't normally sleep well in a strange house."

Tachibana shrugged and stepped around to the driver's door. As they drove back to Tokyo, he asked Haruhi about her family and she told him about her mother passing away while she was still a child.

"I am sorry, Miss Haruhi, I can tell that you miss her greatly. What about your father? Is he still alive then?"

"Yeah, he's been great. He works nights, so I don't always see him as often as I'd like, but we make it work."

Tachibana nodded as he listened to her. When they got closer to her section of the city, Haruhi leaned forward and tapped Tachibana on the shoulder.

"You're not going to drop me off at my house are you? No offense, but if a limousine was seen in my neighborhood, I'd never hear the end of it."

Tachibana smiled in understanding. "I can drop you off a few blocks away, if you'd like."

"That'd be great, I need to stop at the grocery store and pick up a few things for dad's dinner tonight. Tachibana, will Kyoya-senpai be okay? He was in a lot of pain earlier today; he seemed a bit nauseated before you picked us up from Ouran."

Tachibana nodded, "I left his prescription on the table in case he wakes up before I get back, and then I'll watch over him tonight to make sure."

Haruhi sighed in relief. She didn't know quite why she was so worried about the young man who frustrated her so much, but she was glad that he would be taken care of by Tachibana.

Kyoya woke up and glanced around the room. There was no sign of Haruhi, but he knew that someone, most likely Tachibana had been there, because he was now covered with the blanket that he'd placed over Haruhi when she had fallen asleep.

He picked up his glasses, and read the note from Tachibana. His head still ached a bit, but it wasn't as bad as it had been and he didn't want to take his prescription unless he really needed to, so he set it aside and thought about the conversation he'd had with the young girl.

"Stop and sit," then he'd added, "please."

Haruhi had sat down across from him and he'd wondered at first what he wanted to tell her. He'd placed his hand on his head and Haruhi had instantly stood up and gone back into the kitchen. He was about to complain when she came back in and handed him the bottle of aspirin. He'd glared at her, but she was already pouring them both another cup of tea.

"Please take a couple. It could be awhile before Tachibana returns, and you don't need to suffer needlessly."

Kyoya had nodded, then stated, "You need to take some as well. I noticed that you're pretending not to be in pain when you obviously are."

Haruhi had sighed and taken two aspirin that he'd handed to her. As he'd washed the pills down with the tea, Kyoya took off his glasses and placed them on the table. He'd pinched the bridge of his nose and glanced at the girl who fascinated and annoyed him at the same time.

"Haruhi, why did you choose to attend Ouran?" He knew from other sources that she was brilliant if somewhat absent minded but her answer still managed to surprise him.

"Honestly, it's because I want to follow in my mother's footsteps. My mom was a lawyer and this is one of the best ways I can honor her memory. If I can maintain my grades all the way through, then I'll have a better choice of colleges to choose from."

"Do you plan to stay in Japan for your studies then?" He wasn't really that curious or so he told himself.

"I'm not sure yet. For now, I need to focus on high school and keeping my grades up. I was granted this opportunity, but I'm not sure any of you can understand why I want it."

She sounded almost lonely, Kyoya thought as he analysed what she told him and he knew he had nodded in agreement when he replied, "It's not merely wanting to succeed, it's needing to."

She needed to keep her grades up to maintain her scholarship and possibly go on to college. He needed to do the same, but for different reasons. He remembered glancing over at her, and noticing that the aspirin had done its trick. She had closed her eyes, and was almost asleep. Did she have the same problem? Maybe not in the same way he did, after all he spent most of his nights figuring out how to keep the club from going into debt. She probably spent hers studying. He had gone into his room and retrieved the blanket from the foot of his bed. It was old and worn, but it would suffice long enough until Tachibana got back from Tokyo.

He had placed the blanket over her, and heard a small, "thank you," for his effort. He had smiled as he sat down on the sofa across from her. He had learned a few things despite the headache that had plagued him all day. One thing he had learned: he might not want them all the time, but he did like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

When Tachibana returned, he walked straight into the living room. Kyoya was still lying there, but he opened his eyes when he heard the other man approach.

"Did she make it home safely?"

Tachibana smiled at the nonchalant tone. "Yes, sir. I dropped her off, at her request, by her grocery store. Ajima followed her home once she was done. He just reported in and she's home. So is her father."

Kyoya could hear a note of concern in the bodyguard's voice. "What is it?"

Tachibana handed Kyoya his laptop. "The doctor thought you might want to see something in Miss Fujioka's medical file. He said it might help clear up a few things or prevent some future misunderstandings."

Kyoya glanced up, and Tachibana smiled again. "It's nothing life threatening. It can wait until you've had a full night of sleep sir. I do, however, recommend that you read it before you go back to Ouran."

Kyoya frowned, "If it's so important, just tell me about it."

"Miss Fujioka lost her mother ten years ago."

"I know, she told me earlier today."

"What she didn't tell you is that she had an emotional or mental breakdown shortly afterwards."

Kyoya sat up and reached for his glasses. "Is she dangerous?"

"No sir, but it did give her a bit of amnesia for a few weeks. Since then, she's apparently remembered almost everything."

Kyoya opened up the email that the doctor had sent to him. Everything that Tachibana had said so far was in the file. Then he read what Tachibana hadn't told him yet. Kyoya inhaled as the implications of what he read raced through his mind. He traced the charm on his necklace as he stared at the screen.

"They think she hallucinated a childhood friend?"