The sweet chiming of the bell sounded, signalling the end of class. Amidst the bustling of students, Haruhi collected her belongings, thanking every deity in existence that she didn't have club activities that day. With the week she'd had, Haruhi figured she more than deserved a little break.
The approach of the weekend was something she could be thankful for, giving her a much needed two days of respite before she was tossed back into whatever chaos would spring up on Monday.
But, as ever, apparently the twins didn't get that memo.
"Hey, Haruhi." Hikaru was sizing her up, hands on his hips, a dangerous stance. He had that look in his eyes that suggested he was planning something and Haruhi was certain that whatever it was, she wouldn't like it.
For a moment, the universe stood still. Even Kaoru had stopped throwing his crap into his own bag to watch. "Come hang out with us today."
"No way in Hell."
Ever the instigator, Kaoru abandoned his bag and slung an arm around his brother's shoulders. "Why not?"
"Because your idea of fun would be making my life a living Hell." Which they couldn't even try to deny, because it was true. Unfortunately, she'd learned to live with it. That kind of thing was an occupational hazard that came with being friends with the twins. "And I'm busy. I haven't started on any of the assignments yet."
"You're always busy." Hikaru complained, sinking lower into his crossed arms with a childish pout.
"And that homework isn't due until next week." Kaoru added. "Why bother with it now?"
Haruhi rolled her eyes, ignoring their not-so-subtle attempts at manipulation. "Knowing you guys, I'd probably get dragged into some last minute scheme of yours. If I don't get it done early, I run the risk of not being able to do it at all. And considering my scholarship depends on me doing well, I'm sure you can see why that would be a problem."
Like a well-oiled machine, they effortlessly switched tactics.
"It's not fair." Hikaru said, sulkily. "You never have time for us any more."
"I must be invisible during class and club hours then."
"It's not the same." Kaoru argued. "We're always working then."
"What about that carnival you all dragged me to? That wasn't too long ago."
"That doesn't count!" Hikaru was clearly gearing up for either a temper tantrum, or puppy-dog-eyes. She wasn't sure which one she dreaded more. "We went as a group, and you spent most of the time with Kyoya-senpai, anyway. You two stuck together like glue."
Haruhi pinched the bridge of her nose between her thumb and forefinger. "And you have a problem with that, I gather?"
Kaoru frowned, emotions caught in a confusing jumble that showed plainly on his face. "Well, no... We just want to hang out with you."
Downcast, they finished together. "You're our friend, too, you know."
"Okay," She said, patiently. Both of them perked up, expectant, like excited puppies waiting for a treat. "Okay, hear me out. I can't do anything with you today, I'm too busy. But I promise you can drag me anywhere you like tomorrow, alright? You'll have more time that way, as well. Does that sound good to you?"
Oh, she would definitely regret this.
Both twins traded furtive glances, as if partaking in a telepathic conversation.
After an unnervingly prolonged amount of time, identical Cheshire Cat grins spread across their faces, and they high-fived with a loud exclamation of "Score!"
Yep, there it was. Regret hit her with all the subtlety and grace of a two tonne truck.
"I hate you guys." She muttered, striding away.
They followed giddily, sombre expressions lifted.
"Oh, but Haruhi, you just agreed to play with us all day on Saturday." Hikaru said, gleefully.
"I take it back."
"Nice try, but you already promised." Kaoru returned, in a cheerful sing-song.
She groaned, reeling back her face-palm. Trust the twins to play a pity-party to get what they wanted. And trust her to walk right into it. "Alright, fine. You win, I admit defeat." With a look of someone resigned to their fate, she continued, "Would you like anything else while you're here? My wallet? The keys to my apartment? A place in my will?"
"A contract for your soul to be bound to us for all eternity?" They chimed, in cultish unison.
"Yeah, you wish. Now, go to your fancy car and leave me to wallow in peace. Damn rich bastards."
"Be up bright and early—" Like they'd have the balls to crash her apartment at the asscrack of dawn. Not after the tongue-lashing her dad had given them the last time. And each instance before that, all of which were never to be mentioned again owing to how mentally scarring they were. "—See you tomorrow!" Twin hands patted her shoulders, before they skipped off together.
Haruhi could only roll her eyes at their antics.
Almost immediately upon stepping outside the building, a swarm of students surrounded her, all migrating towards their family cars like a single-bodied entity. She returned a couple of warm smiles from regular customers, and was quickly accosted by Renge, who looked like she would explode with enthusiasm over a new Otome game she'd been given special access to and do you want to play it with me, Haruhi? It'll be really fun, I promise!
She extracted herself with a firm maybe, and continued on her way.
Despite everything, today was a good day.
The weather was nice, that perfect balance between hot and cold, and the sun was warm and bright, but not blinding. The atmosphere was sweet, clean, hinting towards the start of Autumn. Soon, the trees would be a vast array of golds and deep reds, and leaves would crunch underfoot.
But, not quite yet.
For now, she was satisfied to take in the lush green hues as she headed out through the school gates, narrowly avoiding a car pulling out of the driveway.
She stopped.
Blinked.
In the space of a few seconds, she almost walked into a second car, turned tail and ran back the way she came— whipping her head back around to see if she could catch even the slightest glimpse that suggested the man was following her in— and then, a moment later, she bounced off something hard and firm that reminded her vaguely of a brick wall.
Only, in her experience, bricks walls didn't exactly go and catch whichever unfortunate soul slammed into them before they even had a chance to hit the ground.
A worried Kasanoda carefully helped her regain her balance, big hands on her shoulders, eyes scanning over the top of her head. "Fujioka, I didn't see you there. You okay?"
Absolutely spiffing, she thought wryly, what could be better than my stalker waiting outside my school for me?
Instead, she swallowed thickly (an unusually hard task) and nodded. "Uh, yeah. Sorry about that, I wasn't looking where I was going."
A narrowed gaze dissected her face.
The hairs on her neck prickled.
Haruhi resisted the urge to look over her shoulder. "Is something wrong? You look…" He paused, and then his expression slipped into something decidedly more dark than she was expecting. "Is somebody messing with you?"
She recoiled, startled by the verbal whiplash of emotions. "No?"
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. I… I just remembered that I left something behind." Haruhi made a vague gesture towards the general direction of the building, which didn't strengthen her Nothing-Suspicious-Going-On-Here case.
"Right..." He intoned, unconvinced. Kasanoda was now very obviously searching for the cause of her distress, but had come up empty, if his hooded glare was anything to go by. "Well, I'm heading that way anyway—" Liar. "—so I guess I'll go with you." She smiled tightly, and nodded, achieving an almost seasick look.
Together, they traipsed back towards the building she'd just exited.
In utter, mind-destroying silence.
But then Kasanoda cut across her and, with a firm hand on her shoulder, started leading her after a retreating figure. "Morinozuka-senpai!"
"What are you doing?" She asked sharply, as Mori turned and ambled towards them.
"What does it look like? I'm getting someone you'll actually talk to, duh." She winced at his bluntness. "My pops taught me how to spot a liar, Fujioka. You're one of the worst I've seen in a long time."
She attempted to protest (not that she really knew how to defend herself against such an accurate statement) but Mori had come to a stop and was looking at them both with the same serious expression he always wore.
Kasanoda addressed the boy without delay. The traitor. "Someone's messing with Fujioka. I don't know any details, but it looks serious. Can I leave her with you?" Once Mori nodded, Kasanoda directed his gaze back to Haruhi, ignoring her mutinous glare as he ruffled her hair. "Hey, the strawberries in the greenhouse are almost ripe. I'll bring you some once they're ready."
It was a peace offering, one which she was tempted to refuse. But his little grin was so hopeful and he had only been trying to help.
Damn him, she couldn't be cruel to a face like that. It was like kicking a puppy.
They parted with a smile, Haruhi following Mori across the lawn, in the general direction of the West Wing.
"You need Kyoya. Right?" Mori, she had to remind herself, was alarmingly observant. Honey was even more so. Speaking of Honey— "Mitsukuni is waiting for me at the Kendo club. Kyoya is in the Third Music Room. His sister is visiting home."
Haruhi wished the journey would take forever. But, frustratingly, the more she hoped, the faster they seemed to go. Suddenly they were at the West Wing, then up the stairs, then through the door, and a surprised Kyoya was looking up from his notebook.
Steel grey orbs took everything in, the grimness in Haruhi's expression, her obvious reluctance, how much more tense Mori was than normal, the way his eyes kept darting about the room as if searching for danger.
All of a sudden his chair was pushed backwards, and he was gazing out the window, both hands braced against the ledge.
A beat.
Kyoya muttered under his breath. It sounded vaguely like a string of curse words. Normally he showed more decorum, but she figured politeness was the least of his concerns right now.
Pulling out his phone, he relayed a clipped set of instructions to what Haruhi assumed was one of his bodyguards. He hung up, and dragged heavy fingers through his hair, causing several flyaway strands to flop into his eyes.
"Did he see you?" There was a note of resignation in his voice.
Haruhi shrugged, helplessly. "I'm not sure. I saw him first, at least. He was leaning against the fence across the other side of the road."
"Is that so? An open position like that, I wouldn't have expected that from him. In any case, he's not there anymore. I've sent Tachibana to sweep the area, but I doubt it will do much good." At her side, Mori shifted, attracting Kyoya's gaze. Wearily, he pinched the bridge of his nose, then offered his teacup to the girl. "Haruhi, energise yourself. I'll explain everything to Mori-senpai."
Haruhi couldn't even find the energy to protest.
She perched on the end of the desk, legs crossed beneath her, sipping coffee that was a little too dark for her taste while Kyoya calmly recounted everything. Mori, for the most part, took the news without a single bat of his eyelashes. His only outward display of anger was the way his fist tightened when hearing about how the man had grabbed at her.
Some minutes later, Kyoya's phone started ringing. He looked even angrier upon hanging up, and relayed the message aloud. "No sign of him. He must have given up and disappeared down a side street. Tachibana is waiting with the car in the courtyard, I'll take you home, Haruhi." He added.
After Mori was sworn to secrecy, they left.
The journey back to Haruhi's apartment passed in complete silence. Both teens stared out the window, pretending to be absorbed in the view, but they were really searching for an unwelcome face in the crowd. One that, thankfully, neither of them spotted. Or, if Kyoya did, he never mentioned it.
Once home, she made Chamomile tea. They sat down on opposite ends of Haruhi's futon, warming their hands around their cups. The space between them was filled with everything left unsaid.
Finally, Haruhi ventured out. "Do you need to be home anytime soon?"
"Not especially." Kyoya said. "Anyway, Fuyumi is there. She beat me at chess this morning, and I would rather not be humiliated again."
Haruhi snorted. "I wouldn't take you for a sore loser."
"She's a sore winner— she laughed and threw the board game pieces at me." He argued, and suddenly they were smiling at each other, the tension broken.
But, in no time at all, Haruhi's smile thinned. With her empty cup settled on the floor and hands gripping her thighs, she really did look her age. Fifteen, ever so young, vulnerable and scared. "What am I going to do?"
Kyoya was no better. He had the expression of someone with more responsibility than he knew what to do with. "I would suggest having your father around more, but considering he has to work long hours, that isn't exactly possible… In any case, I propose the best thing to do would be to shake your schedule up. I'll drive you in for some days, and you can get the train for others. The more unpredictable we can make it, the better."
She hesitated, considering his words carefully, before musing aloud. "But it's not like he'd try to do anything on a crowded train... right?"
Kyoya deftly adjusted his glasses, phrasing himself more delicately than he usually would. "It's better to be safe than sorry. He didn't seem fussed causing a scene outside that convenience store despite the fact it had CCTV. From what I've seen so far, witnesses don't appear to be an issue with him, so I doubt that continuing on with your normal schedule would be a wise course of action."
She was still frowning. "But I don't want to make you go out of your way for something that could just be nothing. The only thing he's done so far is grab me. It's not like he's tried to hurt me."
"Haruhi, I am choosing to go out of my way, there's a difference. As for not being hurt, that could change at any point, and I'm not prepared to risk your safety."
Kyoya, apparently processing his own words, took a long sip of tea, looking almost flustered. She would have smiled, but his expression had already hardened into one of anger. Who it was directed at, she wasn't quite sure.
"Besides, it's the least I could do. I believe I'm to blame for this escalation." He massaged his temples roughly, with the air of someone with everything to lose. Of course, trust Kyoya to try and take responsibility for everything bad that happened within a 5 mile radius of him. "I researched quite extensively. Apparently it isn't wise to confront people like him. Which I did. Very publically. With pepper spray, if you remember."
"Senpai—"
"Don't." His voice was quiet, barely a whisper.
So she didn't.
"Speaking of pepper spray," He pulled out a bottle from his bag and handed it to her. His mask had clicked back into place, expression schooled back into careful neutrality. "That's for you. Don't hesitate to use it."
She turned the pepper spray over in her hands, thoughtfully.
"I've already contacted the school, they're under strict instructions not to hand out information about you without clear identification, and even then to refer to a member of my family's security team beforehand— that should make it harder for him to locate you. Talk to your postal service, it'd be wise to get mail directed to this apartment using your mother's maiden name, rather than Fujioka until this matter is resolved. I've already started a detailed log of his actions, I'll hand it over tomorrow, so be sure to keep it up to date. And, while it may seem a little overkill, as the twins would call it, I feel we should create a safety plan for you and your father, just to be safe."
Her head was spinning as she attempted to process all that information.
"Okay. We can work on that later." Haruhi mumbled, head in her hands. "I hate this."
"I do, too." He took another long sip of his tea. And then, that calculating spark had returned to his eyes, words slow and thoughtful as he continued. "From now on, maybe I should wait with you until your father gets home? A potential boyfriend figure could scare him off."
She arched an eyebrow. "You realise the earliest he gets back is ten, right?"
"Yes. I believe I was present when this was discussed, after all."
Was the amusement she detected?
"Wouldn't you rather be at home?" She asked, which seemed like a valid question to her.
"I don't particularly care as long as I can get my work done."
Haruhi rolled her eyes. "Typical."
That night, Ranka returned home to find both teens sprawled across the futon, fast asleep. Papers lay scattered across the floor, evidence of all their hard work; two empty teacups had rolled down onto the carpet. Haruhi's foot was practically impaling Kyoya's chest, yet he still lay there sleeping soundly.
Carefully shifting the offending limb, Ranka fought back a smile, covered the two with a warm blanket, and dialled the number Kyoya had given them for the boy's bodyguard to inform him that Kyoya would be staying over.
A/N: Here it is, the fourth instalment to this series. I'm really not happy with how this turned out, but there has been a lot of personal shit going on in this week that's stopped me from being able to edit it. I hope it's a least somewhat up to par with my usual posts, I've got my fingers crossed that all of that crap will be in the past soon enough so it hopefully won't effect any future chapters, but I can't really promise anything, unfortunately
Side note: Congrats to those who recognised the whole "Bird Joke charade" I do take a lot of inspiration from Tumblr/ other media, and make it a habit to slip in references to see if anyone notices. Kudos to you guys
Thank you to everyone who supported the last chapter, and this entire fic overall. Every review/favourite/follow really does help brighten my day
Again, feel free to comment anything you might like to see added. I have a basic storyline plotted out, so some might not be able to be worked into the plot, but there are several vague chapters that are lacking linking ideas, so you never know