"Please!"
"No! Why do I have to- why do you just have a dress like this laying about?"
Tamaki held the dress in front of Kagome, who again pushed the fabric out of her face in irritation. This caused him to let out a frustrated huff.
"Two daughters and neither will wear a dress!"
"Since when have I become a part of this!" Kagome spluttered, relieved when the sound of Haruhi's laughter reached her ears.
Haruhi's hands held a tray with several cups balanced expertly around a sweet smelling kettle, and it was the sight of the drinks that had Kagome remembering her promise and began digging through her book bag for the lunch. As Haruhi began to distribute the drinks to everyone, Kagome hesitantly gripped the food, struck with sudden anxiety. Should she wait until after dancing to give the food to Haruhi?
One of the nosy twins who had sat next to Kagome peered down at the box in her hands. "Oh, what's that?"
Kagome shoved it in her bag, feeling her cheeks heat up. "Nothing," she mumbled, accepting a cup of tea from Haruhi with a warm smile.
"Smells good," prodded the other member of the pair. "Is it food?"
"Food?" Haruhi perked up at the word, before turning to Kagome. Her tone was cheery and light upon remembering their phone call, and she made several 'gimme' motions with her hands. "That's right, you promised me lunch!"
"Shouldn't we dance?" Kagome asked weakly.
"I think we'll have enough time for a cup of tea first,"said Kyoya, an upperclassmen and the club's manager. He radiated a sense of amusement, and Kagome suddenly felt read.
He knows. He can tell.
He doesn't know a damn thing, Kagome.
Yes he does.
"Sure," Kagome bit back, forcing a smile. She drew out the boxed lunch and awkwardly handed it over to Haruhi with a mumbled, "Hope you still like the same stuff."
Haruhi looked so excited, her eyes bright with happiness. Kagome couldn't look at her, not while the other girl held that expression. One too many soft looks at Haruhi and Kagome would be found out and it'd be ruined.
Haruhi likes girls too, Kagome's heart whispered, hurt by her brain's rationalizations.
But she doesn't like you, came the gentle response.
As everyone made the appropriate (if not downright excessive) fanfare over her cooking, Kagome found herself on the sidelines with Tamaki, who looked just as lost as she did. She tried to ignore him for a moment, focusing on the twin's impromptu game of monkey in the middle with a cooked sausage. The one who parted his hair to the right eventually won, and triumphantly consumed the snack, much to his brother and Haruhi's dismayed shouts. Then Kagome's traitorous eyes turned back to watching Haruhi, and she had to rip them away again.
Sighing, Kagome cleared her throat to get Tamaki's attention. "Maybe I should take a look at that dress," she said, unsure if she was offering him an olive branch or a rope to keep them from drowning. The expression he shot her was full of a startling amount of awareness and loneliness, suggesting the latter. Then the loneliness cleared, so wholly and entirely that it had to be an act, and Tamaki smiled. He stood up, nearly a foot taller than her, and stooped a bit to offer her a hand.
Neither of them felt Haruhi's curious gaze burning into their backs.
Laughter rustled behind the dressing room curtains.
"Juliette sleeves?" Kagome asked, amused. "You really are the chairman's son."
Tamaki let out a forced little laugh. "I am," he said, a bit heavily. Then his tone lightened to call back, "Juliette sleeves are beautiful, I'll have you know. I bet you look-"
The curtain shifted back, interrupting his speech. Kagome wore the sleeves well, despite her complaints; the long empire cut of the dress accentuated her form. She was… not dainty, dainty was far too delicate a term for someone who radiated power like that. The dress looked entirely different than it would have on Haruhi, who had yet to realize the garment had originally been purchased for her.
"-stunning," came Tamaki's breathy voice. He cleared his throat, coloring in embarrassment as Kagome giggled.
The girl did a small twirl to watch the fabric sway around her legs, content despite her earlier complaining. "I'm not sure pink's my color anymore," Kagome commented, softly enough that Tamaki didn't think he was supposed to hear the pained note in her tone.
Probably red.
Shut up, came the automatic and tired thought. Why do I constantly fight with myself?
"Should we practice?" Tamaki offered her his arm, and Kagome felt herself smile at the manners despite herself.
"I'm here to dance with Haruhi," Kagome reminded him, but he flashed her a beatific little grin and she couldn't help it- call her a sucker- and allowed him to sweep her into his arms. They didn't actually perform a waltz but a clumsy approximation of one, mostly focused on whirling around the little backroom like gleeful children.
Didn't you just admit to being jealous of this guy?
At the sound of boyish laughter, Kagome peeked up at Tamaki. He had his head thrown back in laughter, exposing a long, flushed column of his neck; this close up, Kagome could see tiny, pale freckles dotting his skin. Tamaki, she realized not for the first time, was beautiful, even under the school's fluorescent lights.
Am I jealous? Or am I afraid?
Anyone could easily fall in love with this guy, and that included Haruhi. Haruhi needed just this type of joy, of playfulness in life… and it had been so long since Kagome had just danced for the hell of it. She had come in here not even wanting to dance, and then further refusing the dress, only to give in as soon as Tamaki had asked. Pretty boy was dangerous.
"Kagome?" His voice snapped Kagome to attention, yanking her away from the impending storm. Tamaki was breathless from spinning, a happy grin still pasted on flushed cheeks. He was completely clueless to what a horribly rotten girl Kagome was being. "Should we go show the dress to the others?"
Kagome smiled weakly. "Let's."
When the two of them strode back into the club room, they didn't realize three things:
One- Kagome and Tamaki had slipped away without announcing it to anyone.
Two- The pair had come back out of breath with flushed faces, suddenly seeming to be friendlier than they had been in the beginning.
Three- Kagome had changed clothes.
None of that registered to the three members involved, but everyone else who fully realized the implications raised their brows. So when Haruhi stood up and walked over to Kagome, asking to begin the lesson, it was to the shock of absolutely no one that she completely ignored Tamaki's presence. Kagome, surprised but pleased at the attention, shot a quick glance up at Tamaki, who looked a bit hurt at the silent dismissal but easily backed down.
What was surprising was Kagome's quietly offered, "Tamaki-senpai should show you how to follow. I'll show you how to lead."
Upon seeing the life come back to Tamaki's eyes, Haruhi sighed and gave in. The two girls linked hands and smiled at each other, and Haruhi began to direct them to the ballroom for practice, quietly chattering with secretive smiles.
The rest of the club sat forgotten, each of them in varying levels of shock.
"Well," Mori intoned, his deep voice gaining an amused rumble, "didn't see that one coming."
it's nearly 5 a.m. why do i do this. anyways please review ily!