Hello, again dear readers! SO since life is probably going to get busy, I'm going to do my absolute best to finish this story soon. I've heard many stories but the most common is that college is absolutely time consuming and I really don't want to place this story on a hiatus. Anyway, thank you to everybody for reading, following and reviewing!
Disclaimer: I do not own this series.
Tamaki trudged into the bathroom. He winced. His limbs were sore and the sweat soaking him was not helping. It was utterly disgusting. Tamaki looked into the mirror and couldn't help but yelp. Who the heck was staring back at him? He inspected his reflection. Bloodshot eyes from a lack of sleep. Messed up hair from constantly moving around his bed. A red, runny nose. The mucus that he had mistaken for more sweat was horrifying. He touched his forehead. He had only ever seen other people sick. Was he sick? He wasn't sick yesterday. An unexpectedly loud sneeze answered his question. He looked around frantically for something to clean the boogers that shot out during the sneeze. Relieved, Tamaki took the box of tissues from his cabinet. He took another look in the mirror. "Well then…Apparently water can harm someone," he said to himself. It was difficult to stop the sneezing as he made his way to his shower. After another shot of mucus Tamaki groaned. "This can't be happening." He heard a knock on his bedroom door and walked over to open it.
The maid flinched when he sneezed again. Tamaki apologized and answered her question. "It seems I'm a bit sick. Breakfast huh? I'll take whatever can help me get rid of this sooner but please make it light I have a brunch appointment."
"Yes, sir."
Tamaki walked back into his bathroom to see if the water was warm. A thought suddenly popped up. Wasn't Kyoya extremely germaphobic? And extremely prone to getting sick (hence his germophobia)? Tamaki turned off the shower. His food had arrived quickly. They probably already had it prepared.
Tamaki took it gratefully. He opened the medicine that was placed on the side and swallowed it down, not bothering to read the side effects. He thought again about it. Haruhi's medical records would always be there but there was no guarantee she'd be married by the end of the grabbed his cellphone. He couldn't risk getting his friend sick. Already filled with drowsiness, he quickly texted a message informing Kyoya that he couldn't make it and fell into bed. A quick nap would do no harm. Or so he thought.
Haruhi looked at her cell phone for the first time that day. One missed message from Tamaki. She opened it.
'Sorry for the late notice but I don't think I'll be able to make it today. Why don't we try tomorrow?" Haruhi breathed a sigh of relief. He was supposed to accompany her to the municipal office but now that he had cancelled she could relax. There were no signs of Kyoya stamping his seal onto the divorce form so she decided to take him up on the suggestion he had given her - find another way. Haruhi was exasperated. She never did like to waste time. Whether or not it was a good thing, she could no longer wait for Kyoya to reflect. It was time to apply for divorce mediation. As a lawyer. she knew about this option the whole time but wanted to wait and see Kyoya's reaction. It seemed that he would never come around and she was finding it harder to convince herself to work things out. Haruhi looked at her computer's clock. It was 12pm. That meant she had three hours to think about it some more. She scoffed to herself. 'Yeah right. It's now or never.'That was exactly why she hadn't told anybody about her plans (although Tamaki was able to tell by looking at her). She knew that Tamaki would try to persuade her to think about it but she had thought about it long enough.
With a big sigh, Haruhi resumed her work. 'It's now or never.' she repeated to herself.
Kyoya sat alone at a restaurant. He called a waiter and asked for the time. 12 pm. So his watch wasn't wrong.
Impatience was building inside of him. That idiot was supposed to arrive at 11:30 am. He was the one that insisted on a place that was far. Kyoya mentally slapped himself. He shouldn't have trusted Tamaki when he said it was essential to drive out so far. Kyoya tapped his foot with annoyance. Tamaki didn't pick up any of his calls or answer any of his texts. Kyoya dialed his number again. No response.
'Fine. I guess I'll have to drag you out of bed.' Kyoya swiftly picked up his coat, paid the bill and walked out. 'But when I lay my hands on you, you'll wish you had woken up on your own.'
Tamaki sat up in bed. He yawned loudly, stretching his arms out. That nap had been one of the best decisions of his life. He slowly put on his slippers and stood up. He was instantly shot with a burst of weakness. Despite the smaller but still bothersome ache in his arms, legs, and back, Tamaki browsed through his closet. He felt terrible about ditching Kyoya so he figured the least he could do was help him indirectly. That meant he HAD to go to the offices with Haruhi. She was making a huge mistake and apparently nobody could stop her. Tamaki refused to think that divorce was the only solution but the best he could do at the moment was stall her. His stomach growled fiercely, reminding him that he had exactly 0 meals that day. He glanced at the now soggy breakfast that he didn't have a chance to eat. Who knew medicine could knock someone out so quickly? It was 12:30. That meant he had time to eat before meeting Haruhi at her office. Tamaki called for some soup and went downstairs. He might as well get used to walking around with tissues in his pocket and a nose more stuffed than his teddy bear.
Haruhi's hands stilled on the keyboard. Now that she thought about it Tamaki wouldn't send her a text to cancel. He'd call. He always called first.
'Whatever. He's probably busy.' She continued to type the email to her boss.
She paused again. Tamaki was never "too busy" to call her if he wanted to cancel. He was responsible in that sense. She sighed, debating giving him a call. Would she be a bad friend if she didn't make sure he was okay? Yes. Yes, she would be. Haruhi quickly finishing typing and revised the email. 'Let's see. I stated the case, parties involved, outcome probabilities, dates, assigned team…' After triple-checking her email she sent it.
'Now to call Tamaki.' Haruhi picked up her phone and pressed the star button. She then pressed the buttons for Tamaki's number. No answer. She called his home number.
"This is the Suoh residence."
"Hi. This is Haruhi Fujioka. Is Tamaki home?"
"Hello, Mrs. Ootori!" The maid responded cheerfully. She didn't hear Haruhi wince at the title. " is still in bed."
"Oh. Is he okay?"
"He appears to be sick but don't worry Mrs. Ootori it's only a cold." So that was why he canceled. It had to be much worse than it seemed if he wasn't able to keep up with his plans.
"I see. Do you happen to know how he got sick?"
"He doesn't want to call a doctor but I assume it's because he came home soaking wet the other day."
"Well if he wakes up please let him know that I'll stop by and drop off some porridge soon."
"Of course ."
Haruhi thanked her and hung up. She glanced at the clock. 12:30. She had a couple of hours before she was officially off work.
There was a knock at her door.
"Come in."
Her boss walked in. "I received your email. I just want to say that I salute your ruthless analysis."
"Um, thank you?" Haruhi wasn't sure if the ruthless part was a good thing.
"I was surprised that you submitted it so early since I thought your lunch break would consume some time."
"I actually decided to work through it because the email had to be sent as soon as possible."
"Well I appreciate your dedication. Actually I also stopped by to let you know that you may leave early today. I just received a call from the safety inspectors. They had a last minute change of plans so if we want to get certified by next week they have to inspect the building today."
"Is it okay to leave our things here?"
"I believe so but I'd suggest you lock them up. You never know."
"Of course. Thank you for letting me know."
"That's my job. See you tomorrow then." The boss walked out of her office.
Haruhi couldn't believe the coincidence of everything but she wasn't complaining either. If she could drop off the porridge before Tamaki woke up she could rest assured that he won't insist on accompanying her even though he had cancelled first. Gathering her things, Haruhi thought of where she could get some porridge. Finally she decided to just make some. It didn't take very long and she knew that a homemade meal would balance out the fact that she didn't take him with her.
Kyoya was about twenty minutes from Tamaki's house when he received a call. He picked up his phone. It was his father. "Hello father."
"Kyoya you need to come to the office."
"I'm currently busy with what we spoke about earlier this month."
"You know business comes first."
"I don't work for the Ootori Company anymore."
"No you don't. But you do own a share of the company. It would be in your best interest to come to the briefing. It starts in ten minutes." Yoshio hung up.
Kyoya simply tossed his phone aside.
He checked his watch. It was 12:50. After a mental debate he sighed. "There's been a change of plans. To the Ootori Group's headquarters please."
The driver nodded.
Kyoya knew he couldn't take the meeting lightly even though he only wanted to strangle Tamaki at the moment. His father would never inform any shareholder about a meeting at the last minute. Whatever the topic was it had to have been surprising. Kyoya had abandoned enough people he loved. He couldn't abandon his father and brothers too.
Haruhi knocked on Tamaki's front door. She was okay with using her keys to open his gate but not his front door. That was too much.
The relatively modest but still giant doors opened. She walked in, greeting the staff.
"Master Tamaki is in his quarters. Would you like me to inform him that you are here?"
"No thank you. I just came to drop off some porridge since I heard he was sick." Haruhi said her goodbyes and headed off. She was almost to the door when she heard her name yelled. In a split second Tamaki was downstairs and hugging her with all his might.
"Senpai I thought you were sick."
Tamaki sneezed loudly. "Just a tad." He let go of her. "You weren't going to visit the offices without me were you?"
"Actually I was." Haruhi turned around, heading for the door again.
"WAIT!" Tamak ran to block the doorway in a star position. "Haruhi, you can't go!"
She sighed. "Why not?"
"Because- because you promised! Yes!" Tamaki's expression became dark and smug.
Haruhi became nervous. Tamaki wasn't evil but when he got that look on his face she knew he had her.
"What exactly did I promise?"
"You said that if I got sick because of the rain, you would come take care of me. Now I am sick … and it was because of the rain."
Haruhi didn't think he'd actually get sick. It was an 'in the moment' statement. In fact, it wasn't even possible to get sick from the rain. She told Tamaki exactly that.
Tamaki, however, was unperturbed. "You said exactly this: " Tamaki made the best Haruhi impersonation he could manage. "If you get sick in any way I'll come over to help you."
Darn, Haruhi couldn't deny him it if she had promised. "You're right." But that didn't mean she couldn't find a loophole. " I'll come care for you right after I go to the offices."
"But that's double the work! Why take a trip there and back when you can care for me now and go later? They close at five pm today." Tamaki had taken a course in reasoning. It helped sometimes.
Haruhi sighed. He was right about that. She glanced at the clock above his doorway. One o'clock. "Fine. I'll take care of you until you fall asleep. Then I'll go to the offices and come back if necessary." She smiled because she knew that sick people needed to nap often. A newbie to sickness had to be more vulnerable.
Tamaki agreed. He wasn't planning on going down so easily. He'd act like a complete baby if he had to. There was no way Haruhi was going to the offices. At least not today.
Kyoya arrived at the meeting with about two minutes to spare. He entered with as much confidence as always, ignoring the stares he was receiving. He sat down beside Fuyumi. She was married but had no plans to transfer her shares over to her husband so she still attended the meetings.
He wasn't surprised when his sister gave him the stink eye even though she was known for being sweet and friendly. She had probably heard about his pending divorce. "I'd smack you if the meeting wasn't about to start," she whispered.
Kyoya rolled his eyes. "You wouldn't smack a fly dear sister. And hello to you too by the way."
Yoshio called the board to attention so Fuyumi held back her reply. These things bored her to death but there were times when she obtained valuable information so she continued to attend.
"I am sure you are all questioning why this meeting was called on such short notice. I know every one of you has a pending schedule so this meeting will be as brief as possible." After speeding through the usual initial procedures it was Yuuichi's turn to speak up.
Kyoya listened intently for anything he didn't know before. Business in Japan was thriving. Of course.
"However…"
Kyoya crossed his arms when he heard the next part. Their business partner in the United States was filing for bankruptcy. So that was it. He couldn't believe his brothers and father had let that happen in the short time since he had left. What the hell was going on?
"It was reported that the company was financially stable however Mr. Ito recently visited…"
Mr. Ito began to report his findings. The partner had taken a risky investment that resulted in less profit than expected. In fact the loss was so bad that nobody was willing to buy the stocks and bonds. Kyoya couldn't react but he itched to clean his glasses. It helped clear his thoughts. How could they have overlooked this? Who approved the investment? Based on the details, it was exceedingly obvious that the investment was not worth the risk.
Kyoya's expression remained stoic as the directors discussed what should be done. He didn't flinch when they all turned to him. He was the person that had set the partnership in motion after all. There was no excuse for his inability to foresee such a dilemma.
"May I remind you all that I was against the partnership in the United States." He stood up to retrieve the necessary files. "More specifically, I warned the Board of Directors about the company's previous inclination to make risky investments. According to the minutes, the Board voted to approve the partnership on the basis that the proposed company managed to obtain a profit from said previous risky investments."
"We agreed under the condition that the head of the partnership - you- would manage all activity regarding the company."
"You all know for a fact that I was dismissed from all activity before the approval was signed."
The board bustled around. That was true.
Kyoya sat back down in his assigned seat. The room was more chaotic than it had ever been.
Yoshio's voice was heard above the rest. "It seems we are forgetting to ask who exactly signed the document."
Mr. Ito spoke up. "The copy we have here contains Mr. Kyoya Ootori's seal."
Everybody in the room turned to stare at Kyoya again. Kyoya's facial expression did nothing to convey his utter disbelief. He couldn't protest against the accusation when it was clear as day on the document. But he couldn't admit guilt to something he didn't do. "Shall we review the camera footage that proves I have not stepped foot into any Ootori Group building for the past week or so? The date on the document states that it was created after my dismissal and signed in one of our buildings."
The board shared skeptical glances, including his family.
Kyoya tensed up. Proving his innocence would be difficult but possible. Not to mention that, based on the current mood, the meeting would take longer than expected.
"Tamaki senpai, you have to eat the porridge."
"No." Tamaki leaned his face away when Haruhi tried to feed him. He had succeeded in convincing Haruhi to take charge on his sick day. The staff was gone and she was too kind to leave a sick friend alone. He had relented to eating the porridge. After all, he couldn't miss the opportunity to eat a homemade meal. Even so, he was not going to give in so easily.
Haruhi put the spoon down with little restraint on her anger. "You said you'd eat if I fed you!"
"I am eating! Just at my own pace," Tamaki stated matter of factly.
Haruhi picked the spoon up again. She menacingly held it in front of Tamaki. "You. WILL. Eat. This. Understood?"
Tamaki shrunk into his chair. "Yes, ma'am." He took the spoon into his mouth.
"Good. Now feed yourself."
"But-"
Haruhi's glare cut him off.
With less speed than a snail, he scooped up another spoonful and brought it up to his mouth.
Haruhi hung her head in her hands. He would be the death of her. By the time Tamaki finished it was 2 pm.
"Okay senpai. It's important to take medicine on a full stomach. Coincidentally, it's time for your next pill." Haruhi retreated into the kitchen. A few seconds later she emerged with a pill and a cup of water. "Here. Take it while I go to the restroom."
Tamaki took the pill hesitantly. He put it into his mouth along with a mouthful of water.
When Haruhi came back she facepalmed. "What are you doing?"
"wjnsoeoenwksl" Tamaki tried to speak with his mouth full of water sloshing around in his mouth.
"Just swallow the pill."
Tamaki ran to the sink and spit it out. "But it's hard!"
"Fine. Lucky for both of us I know a way to make it easier."
She retrieved a glass of milk from the fridge. "I couldn't swallow pills either but I learned that milk was probably the best liquid to use. I thought you wouldn't need it since you swallowed the medicine perfectly fine in the morning." Haruhi had asked the maid. She didn't believe his little act at all but she had promised to stay until he fell asleep.
"I need another pill."
Haruhi turned to the kitchen.
Tamaki stopped her. "I've made you take too many trips already. I'll go get it myself."
When Tamaki didn't emerge after five minutes Haruhi walked into the kitchen.
"It seems that the medicine is lost. Hehe." Tamaki said.
"Or maybe somebody hid it."
"Who would do such a thing?"
"I wonder," She replied sarcastically.
Her eyes narrowed when she noticed a cylindrical bulge in Tamaki's shirt pocket. "I'm." Haruhi walked towards him. "Not." Tamaki stepped back. "Stupid." Having cornered Tamaki, Haruhi reached up. "Senpai." She brought the bottle of pills out. Tamaki let out a shaky breath he didn't realize he was holding. He didn't know if the nerves were from her sudden proximity or his life flashing before his eyes.
She handed him the glass of milk and a pill. "Drink."
Tamaki once again put a pill into his mouth and then a mouthful of milk. His cheeks remained round.
"Tamaki." Haruhi said in a warning tone.
Tamaki shook his head, refusing to gulp it down.
"If you don't take your medicine I'm going to leave."
Tamaki ran to the sink and spit again. "Wait! I- I really can't drink it! Maybe if there was an easier way to take the medicine? Perhaps liquid medicine?"
"The staff went home. We would have to walk to the pharmacy."
"Let's go then!"
"You can't go out like that remember?" Haruhi smirked a little. That was what he had insisted on when she tried to convince him to see a doctor earlier. "I guess I'll just go by myself."
"Wait! I heard that blending the pill into a milkshake helps?" Tamaki didn't know if she would come back. Actually, she definitely would return but there was no guarantee that she wouldn't go to the offices first.
"You know powdered medicine is gross right?"
"As long as I can take my medicine it's okay."
"Fine." Haruhi began to prepare the ingredients for his milkshake - strawberries, bananas, milk and yet another pill.
When the milkshake was done she handed him the glass, wrinkling her nose. It even smelled awful.
Tamaki gulped. Oh, the things he did for his friends.
Haruhi watched triumphantly as he drained the glass. He'd be out cold in no time.
"Meeting adjourned."
Kyoya stood up to say goodbye to the other directors. Once everybody that wasn't family had cleared out, Yoshio turned to him.
"Kyoya, I hope you had nothing to do with this."
"As I stated before, I have not interfered in any sort of Ootori Group business since my dismissal."
Yoshio wasn't the type of man to defend his children simply because he was their father. For the sake of avoiding damage to the unbiased appearance, he didn't let Kyoya know that he believed him. "Let's hope not." He walked out, closely trailed by his two eldest sons.
Fuyumi sighed. "You know that no matter what you'll be the one in the crossfire right?"
"It would be naive to think otherwise."
"Oh, little brother. Always keeping your cool." She patted his shoulder.
Kyoya simply adjusted his glasses. Fuyumi shook her head, walking ahead of Kyoya. "Come. We have some catching up to do."
,Sitting in his childhood bedroom Kyoya felt like his sixteen year old self. That was back when the company was the only thing that occupied his thoughts. That was before Haruhi opened the wrong door and accidentally barged into his life.
Fuyumi talked rapidly as she folded his old clothing. He never did bother to empty out the room, choosing instead to buy a new wardrobe.
"I'm telling you Kyoya, you're a real sweetheart. You're just a bit rough around the edges…."
Kyoya sighed dejectedly.
Fuyumi stopped, putting the clothes down. "I'm sorry. I know that's not what you wanted to hear. I can't help you if I don't know the whole story."
"I don't think anyone can help me."
"Stop being so dramatic little brother." Fuyumi sat down next to him on his bed. "What do you think is the reason you're getting a divorce?"
Kyoya hesitated. His immediate response was work. But Haruhi wouldn't be so angry if that was the case."I don't know."
"Kyoya, you're not trying. It took you less than a minute to give up and say 'I don't know'" Fuyumi moved to a comfortable chair across from him. He needed space to think.
"Well, what am I supposed to do if that's the truth."
"Kyoya, calm down and think. You're not an Ootori if you can't find a solution to even the most difficult of problems." Fuyumi leaned back in her chair and grabbed a book from the bookshelf beside her. She usually didn't like to boast about that characteristic in her family but she knew it would strike a chord with Kyoya.
Kyoya closed his eyes, lying down on his bed. He carefully reviewed the past few days.
Fuyumi closed the book. She stood up and stretched. "Well," she said to herself. "Since it seems that this will take a while, I'll go prepare some snacks."
Fuyumi was in the kitchen when Kyoya bolted up.
Now that he thought about it, every time he mentioned a baby there was a reaction. His head ached as he thought of possible explanations for their reactions. Haruhi was furious because she wanted a child? That didn't make sense. They both agreed to contraceptives. If she wanted a child she would have discussed it with him, right? He grabbed his coat and hurriedly walked out of the room.
"Kyoya, where are you going?"
"Tamaki's house. I might have an idea but I need it confirmed."
"You go, little brother! I knew you weren't thinking hard enough."
Haruhi sat in the corner of the playroom. Her eyes drifted from the television to the clock. It was almost three. She heard a faint snore, prompting her to smile. Finally! Tamaki had finally given in to his sleepiness. Making sure Tamaki was actually soundly snoring, she carefully tiptoed towards the door. Her hand reached the doorknob, turning it slowly. She winced when she heard the door creak. She stopped, listening for any signs of him waking up. Another snore. She let out a small sigh of gratitude. She silently slipped out of the room, closing the door behind her. "That was close."
"I know, you almost left without me."
Haruhi turned around, grimacing. "I thought you were asleep senpai."
Tamaki yawned. "I can't sleep with a guest at home."
"Then maybe I should go. That way you can rest. You're obviously very tired."
"Nope. You can't leave until I sleep, remember?"
She groaned but nodded. "Fine. I'm going to get some snacks from the kitchen."
"Oh! I want some cookies!"
"Okay. I'll be up in a bit then."
"Wait! Can we bake some?"
"I don't think that's a good idea."
"Pleaaaseee" Tamaki begged with his famous kicked puppy look.
"Fine." Haruhi walked downstairs with Tamaki trailing her. Now all he had to do was find a way to 'accidentally' drop food on her. She'd never go to an office with dirty clothes and she'd refuse to shower at his house. If he timed it right, there would be no time for her to go home, shower and make it to the offices before closing time.
Twenty minutes later the pair had finally collected all necessary ingredients for the cookies.
"I can't believe you ordered more ingredients when you have everything here." Haruhi shook her head. Why were rich people so frivolous?
"We didn't have any eggs in stock."
"You could have just ordered the eggs them." Haruhi stared at the pile of ingredients (fresh from the store) that was laid out in front of her.
Tamaki shrugged. "We might need them. Now then, what do we need?"
"Well, we have to make the cookie dough so we need a bowl and something to mix the ingredients."
"Oh! Maybe we can each make a batch and see who's cookies are better!"
"Sounds good. " 'Whatever will get this done faster,' Haruhi thought.
When the ingredients were in the bowl Haruhi grabbed the electric mixer. She glanced over at Tamaki. He was clean. Tamaki did have a gift for remaining clean in even the messiest of situations. 'Both the mixer and the spoon would be messy…' Out of everything Tamaki bought, another mixer was not on the list. Tamaki grabbed the spoon. He eagerly began to mix, causing the batter to splash around dangerously.
Haruhi hesitated, her hand before she could hand Tamaki the electric mixer. The mixer would be worse.
"You're right! The mixer would be way faster." Tamaki took the electric mixer from her.
Haruhi realized a split second too late what his intentions were. "Wait!"
It was too late. Tamaki had turned the mixer into full power mode and shoved it into the bowl. In mere seconds the two were covered from head to toe in a gooey mess of would-be cookies.
"Oh no!" Tamaki was genuinely shocked. He wanted to make a mess but not so soon! He hoped he'd be able to spill some leftover ingredients once the cookies were in the oven. What a waste of ingredients.
Haruhi counted down in her head. She glared at Tamaki. Even though he had turned off the mixer at this point she took it away from him and set it down on the counter.
Tamaki shrunk back in fear. "I'm sorry."
Haruhi only shook her head. "I hope that was an accident, Tamaki."
"It was! I didn't know it would do that. I've never baked cookies on my own…"
Haruhi's irritation receded. That was true. "I'm sorry too. I should have shown you how to use the mixer before letting you use it." She felt batter fall from her hair onto her shoulder. She reached up to touch her hair. Having short hair was nice but she had grown it out again over the years. This was a moment where she wished her hair had remained short. "Great," Haruhi stated flatly as her fingers got stuck in her hair. "I love having sticky hair," she continued as she wiped batter of her cheeks. "And batter covering my face is fantastic."
Tamaki laughed. She was wearing such a cute expression... he stopped laughing quickly, coughing. His face became red.
'What?" Haruhi licked some batter off her fingers. What a waste.
"Nothing. Um, we better get this cleaned up."
"You're right." Haruhi glanced at the clock. Fifteen minutes until four. Crap.
"You must be uncomfortable with all of the batter on you," Tamaki noted, casually. "I can clean up while you go wash up if you like."
'I don't have time to go home and wash up though.' Haruhi weighed her options. Washing her hair and face would take forever. And it did nothing to get rid of the batter on her arms and neck. It seemed she had no choice. "May I use your shower to wash up?"
Tamak balked at her question. That was not part of his plan.
"I know I don't have clothes here but maybe I can ask my dad to bring some. Hopefully, he can drop them off before I'm done showering. And if not, may I borrow some of your clothes senpai?"
Tamaki nearly fainted at the question. He had no problem lending her his clothes but now that he thought about it, he never had lent her clothes before. There was no reason to. Even when she fell off the cliff - the shirt had been Kyoya's.
"It's fine if it makes you uncomfortable."
Tamaki realized he had been staring off into space and quickly reassured her. "Of course, you can use the shower and borrow my clothes Haruhi. You just caught me a bit off guard since you're usually against showering here and things like that."
"That's because I can usually go to my house. This time I really have no choice."
"Let's go to my room to get some clothes then."
They walked upstairs. Tamak looked for some sweatpants and a shirt while she talked to Ranka. Finally, he handed her the clothes.
Haruhi walked into her usual room but returned a minute later. "Um, I don't know if this is a usual thing but the shower in there doesn't pour out any water."
Tamaki facepalmed. How could he forget? "That's right. I'm sorry Haruhi. I forgot that the head maid turns off the water from most rooms when the staff is gone."
Haruhi's eyes widened in surprise. Was that allowed?
Tamaki smiled at her. So she did worry about him. He knew she wasn't as cold as she seemed! Those twins owed him some money. "Oh no, it's nothing bad don't worry. I just had an, uh, incident a while back." He rubbed his neck at the memory. How was he supposed to know that turning on all the showers at once wouldn't actually flood the house like in the cartoons? It was because he didn't know that he had to try!
"Okay…So what bedrooms have running water?"
"Er, just mine?" Tamaki said.
"Oh." Haruhi glanced at the digital clock on his nightstand. Her shower had to be soon and fast. "That's okay. I'll shower here then."
Tamaki nodded. "I'll wait outside then."
The two moved to their respective rooms. Tamaki hummed to himself while sitting outside the door. He had been waiting for about ten minutes when a ring cut through the air causing him to jump. It was Ranka. Tamaki debated answering. Before he could make up his mind the phone stopped ringing. One new voicemail popped up. It was from Ranka. Tamaki opened it. He knew that was an invasion of privacy but it could be an emergency!
"HI, honey!" Ranka's voice blared through the phone. "It's only because I know that you check your voicemail often that I'm allowing myself to leave one for you. I'm sorry but I just received an emergency call at work! Tell that imbecile to lend you some clothes okay darling? Bye!"
"Yes!" Now Haruhi HAD to either go home for clothes or postpone her trip to the offices.
Kyoya pulled up into Tamaki's driveway. His drive there had been full of nothing but questions swirling around in his mind. What had happened when he was in the United States? Why was there such a big change in Haruhi's attitude? What was so bad about mentioning a child? Kyoya looked for the usual guard in charge of opening the gate but couldn't find anybody. He parked his car and walked over to the smaller entrance to the residence. He looked through his keys for the spare that Tamaki had given him. Finally, he opened the door and walked into the garden that led to the house.
Tamaki stood up. It was 4:10. He did his happy dance. He had succeeded! The only worrying thing was that Haruhi was still in the shower. Was she okay? He knew for a fact (not because he was creepy but because she often criticized his half-an-hour-long showers) that Haruhi tried to be done as fast as possible.
Again, Kyoya saw no employees as he walked towards the residence. Tamaki must have sent them away for the day then. That was strange. He felt a twinge of worry rush through him. Was Tamaki okay? The guy could be annoying but Kyoya did care about him more than he cared to admit. He unlocked the door to Tamaki's house and walked in. The first thing he noticed was a lack of noise. That wasn't at all like Tamaki. He caught a whiff of smoke, prompting him to walk into the kitchen. All he saw was a mess of cookie dough everywhere. Then he noticed that the oven was on. The idiot had left it on again. He turned it off, waving away the small clouds of smoke that were spiraling up. Then he walked upstairs. If Tamaki wasn't in his kitchen, he had to be in his room.
Tamaki knocked on his bedroom door. No response. He entered cautiously, covering his eyes. When he heard no scream or voice tell him to get out he uncovered his eyes and walked to his bathroom door. He hesitated, holding his fist ready to knock on the door.
"Tamaki." Tamaki jumped, turning towards the door.
"Kyoya," Tamaki responded, his face turning pale. He was in trouble.
Haruhi turned off the shower. The cookie dough was hard to wash off but luckily she had learned a few tricks from previous accidents. She looked around for a towel. Making sure it was clean she dried herself off. It was only when she wrapped it around her hair that she realized she left her clothes in the other room. Damn it…
"What are you doing here?" Tamaki glanced nervously at the bathroom door. He prayed that Haruhi wouldn't choose this time to exit.
"I came to talk to you about Haruhi. I think I know why she hates me."
"Really?" Tamaki forgot his panic in a moment of pure excitement. Finally!
"Yes. Listen-" Kyoya moved towards Tamaki's balcony where there were chairs. Tamaki rushed to him.
"Why don't we talk in the living room?"
"No, I need to tell you before I lose my train of thought. So-"
Tamaki tried to drag him towards the door. "I really insist on us talking elsewhere."
"Why are you so nervous?" Kyoya sat down at the table on the balcony.
"No reason." Tamaki gave up trying to drag him out, choosing to close the balcony door instead. At least this way if Haruhi showed up it would seem as if she had come from the outside and not his shower...maybe... hopefully.
Haruhi tried to listen for any sound coming from the room. She knew Tamaki wouldn't enter the room anyway but it was better to be safe than sorry. After all, she only had a towel wrapped around herself. She knocked softly on the door. There was no noise. The coast was clear. She exited the bathroom. The clothes were nowhere to be found. She sighed. She couldn't risk going outside because Tamaki would definitely be waiting in the hallway. She carefully opened the closet that Tamaki had opened earlier.
Kyoya stopped mid-sentence. "There's someone in your house." He stood up.
"No there isn't." Tamaki fought the urge to smack himself. He should have said that yes there was. Damn it!
"I heard a knock just now."
"I didn't hear anything."
Kyoya looked at him with suspicion. He moved to open the balcony doors.
"Really Kyoya it was probably just one of the dogs."
Haruhi finally found another pair of sweats and a sweater. Geez, his closet was gigantic. She made her way to the bedroom again. 'I guess I should change here since the door is locked.'
Kyoya opened the door just as Haruhi's towel fell to the ground.
Haruhi and Kyoya made eye contact for a second before the present hit them. Haruhi quickly covered herself with the towel. Kyoya couldn't move. Tamaki was wide-eyed. Out of all things that could have happened why did it have to be this.
"Kyoya, I swear-" Tamaki began.
"Shut up," Kyoya whispered. This was the scariest possible thing he could have done. His voice was low and quaking. His face was red although his eyes gave nothing away.
"Kyoya, you know I wouldn't-"
"What part of shut up don't you understand?" Kyoya turned around to scream at Tamaki.
Haruhi was glued to her spot. What could she say? Sorry? She hadn't done anything wrong, after all.
"So this is why you wanted a divorce?"
Although Kyoya's reaction was eerily calm, she was unfazed (or tried to be anyway). Haruhi shook her head. "No, but I wish it was."
Tamaki wanted to strangle her for the first time since she had dived off the cliff. Why couldn't she be a bit less blunt?
Kyoya took a deep, quivering breath. "This situation says otherwise."
"It's not my fault you misunderstood everything. I didn't do anything wrong I was just changing."
"In Tamaki's bedroom!" Kyoya slammed the wall with his fist, ignoring the burning pain that coursed through his knuckles.
"Does it matter where? The fact is I'm not at fault here!" Haruhi grew defensive. She was many things but a cheater wasn't one of them.
Tamaki slowly inched out of the bedroom. He figured his presence would probably make things worse.
"Tamaki, stay right where you are," Haruhi commanded. "We did nothing wrong. Kyoya is the one that misunderstood."
"What did I misunderstand? How could anybody misunderstand anything when his WIFE is naked in his best friend's bedroom?" Kyoya turned angrily to Tamaki. "So that's why you were so eager to get me out of here?"
"No. Kyoya, I wanted to -"
"Hide your affair? Until when? How long has this been going on?" Kyoya closed his eyes.
"This-" Tamaki began.
"You know what? Don't tell me." He turned to the door. He couldn't bring himself to look at her. "I'll see you at the municipal office tomorrow as soon as they open."
"No! Please, hear us out," Tamaki exclaimed in exasperation. "Haruhi, explain it to him! We would never betray you Kyoya."
"...I'll see you there," Haruhi responded.
"No! Kyoya, don't you want to resolve this calmly? You hate acting impulsively. " Tamaki tried to grab Kyoya's arm as he left but Kyoya shook him off harshly.
"I'll leave you two to what you were doing," Kyoya said in pure disgust, slamming the door shut behind him.
Tamaki turned to Haruhi desperately. "Haruhi? Aren't you going to go after him?"
"If he doesn't know me enough to realize that I would never cheat on him…" She turned away from him, wiping away the tears that were rapidly falling down her cheeks. "Please leave. I have to change."
Tamaki hesitated. He wanted to reach out and comfort her but instead left the room. Now what were they going to do?
