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Coffee Shops and Cameras
Chapter 13
UNIT was a place that took me way back. The music, the people, the atmosphere. I spent a hefty chunk of my early 20s in that bar.
It wasn't like the huge nightclubs in the city where the music was so loud you couldn't hear yourself speak, or the dive bars you'd find yourself in at 4am when the fun had dried up. UNIT was a small and relatively unknown bar, even now after all these years. It was a bar located at the top of a building down an unassuming street, with a dance club downstairs in case you wanted to take things up a notch. But my favourite was the bar, it opened onto a roof terrace, where string lights were hung, a wooden bar with golden lanterns sat, fake grass underfoot, and blankets on every seat in case you got cold. The music played softly in the background, and there was enough room to have a little dance if the mood took you. It was perfect.
Dad had found out about it from a customer at his work. It was like an artisan's alcoholic dream.
"Oh...wow" Tamaki breathed out, "This is...not what I expected"
"What were you expecting?" I raised an eyebrow, "Bottles of scotch in paper bags and methed out strippers?"
"Well...no" he replied, "Maybe a step above that..."
"I'm gonna get us some drinks" Arai announced, he sauntered off backwards and threw his arms towards us, pointing, "Get a table!"
"You're full of surprises Haruhi" Kaoru chuckled as we all settled down in a booth. I noticed how Hikaru seemed to push his way next to me, shoving towards me down the curved seat until our sides were pressed against one another. I tilted away as much as the surrounding available space would allow.
"Surprises?" I questioned.
"Where the hell do you meet a friend like Arai? And keep him?"
"I told you, school" I grinned.
"Was he always so...boisterous?"
"Boisterous?"
"A real jock"
I laughed, "No, he's just a big kid. And he's never let me down, so that's why I kept him around"
I glanced over at Arai who was leaning across the bar, making the barmaid laugh in the same giggly way I'd heard many women before her do. To my right I saw Hikaru making the same observation. I assumed the barmaid was his type too, because the way he looked at Arai was less than friendly. Come to think of it, Hikaru had been giving Arai that same look all night.
I gave him a nudge with my elbow, "Hey" I hissed, "Stop that"
Hikaru tore his eyes away and set them on me. From how close we were sitting, his nose was almost touching mine, I could practically feel his warm breath tickling my lips. It reminded me of that night in his room, when he'd towered over me, shirtless, lying above me, his mouth close enough to-
"Stop what?" He replied quietly.
I blinked, "Stop...staring at him like that...I mean, if looks could kill..."
"Then I'd be lowering his coffin into the ground right now"
I gave him a look of disbelief, "What is your problem? I understand he's not like the people you usually associate with, but he's a good person and doesn't deserve your bigheaded bullshit"
Hikaru's jaw tensed like he was trying to hold in his anger, "So you don't have a problem with how he's been staring at you?"
"Staring at me? Are you crazy?"
"Like a piece of meat"
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Was Hikaru really going so far as to try and mess up mine and Arai's friendship to justify his crap? "Don't be stupid Hikaru"
"I'm just looking out for you" He hissed, lowering his face so it was even closer. His lips were barely a finger's width away from mine. My heart stopped beating and my breathing froze, "Do you have a problem with that?" His eyes dropped to my mouth, and I forgot to reply.
"I hope you still like shots Haru, 'cause I got you the full range"
I snapped my neck away from Hikaru instantly at the sound of Arai's approaching voice. Everyone watched with growing smiles as a tray of shots in every colour was placed down on the table.
"Wooooow" Kaoru gaped, "Three each? You're killing me"
"Share mine out" Kyoya shrugged, "I drink Shochu and nothing else"
"Each to their own" Arai smirked.
"Can I have pink and blue ones?" Honey's eyes lit up, "they match my new commoner clothes" he looked down at the blue jeans and the pink polo shirt he wore with a grin.
"Sure thing little guy" Arai chuckled, "Hikaru, any preference?" He raised an eyebrow and turned towards us.
Hikaru's jaw locked. Was he being serious?
"He can have whatever I don't drink" I smirked, "Because I for one am extremely thirsty" I made sure I had Hikaru's attention as I slid two shots off the tray and threw them back, wincing as the strong spirits ran down my throat.
"So you're going to get drunk to teach me a lesson now?" Hikaru murmured so only I could hear.
"Today's lesson Hikaru...is that not everything is about you"
I winked, and took another shot.
HIKARU
Lord have mercy...
This woman could throw them back. And Hikaru didn't mean that in a cool 'wow she can hold her drink' kind of way. He meant it in a 'oh my god how is she able to lift another glass to her lips' sort of way.
As the evening progressed, the group found their way downstairs to the club where the music was loud, the lights were colourful, and the drinks were nonstop. It was a good thing this place wasn't hugely well known, Hikaru would have lost the others in the blink of an eye if that place had been filled. But there were enough people limping and stumbling across the dance floor, and several groups sharing bowls of alcohol. There was even a guy lighting up shots on the bar top, flames flickering in front of drunken girls who cheered.
It was now 2am, and there were 6 of them left. Honey was down for the count about an hour after arriving, when those 3 shots hit him like a train. Mori took his drunk ass home soon after. But the last men standing were following close behind him.
Hikaru had taken it upon himself to satisfy his whiskey cravings, leaving the rainbow shots Arai had provided to the others. Tamaki, Arai and Haruhi shared those, followed by another tray, then another. The rest was history.
Hikaru leaned back against the wall, keeping his eyes trained on Haruhi, who seemed to be attempting a moonwalk across the dance floor in those tight blue jeans and low cut white tank top. She looked ridiculous, but in the most delicious way possible.
Hikaru could feel the embrace of alcohol in his system, usually that meant even less restraint; but still he didn't dare approach Haruhi as she danced. She hadn't been exactly friendly towards him since the first shot she took. With a hefty amount of booze in her system, he doubted she'd give him a particularly warm reception if he joined her.
She had been dancing rings around a very wobbly Tamaki, and doing her best to pull Kaoru around like a little girl swinging around her barbie doll. Hikaru struggled to hold in the chuckles as he witnessed the trainwreck. Unfortunately, as one song came to an end and another began, Arai who had been busying himself at the bar up until that moment, strode across to her like a missile locked onto a target. When he got to her he held her in a bear hug from behind, causing her to let go of Kaoru's hands and throw her head back in laughter.
Hikaru's fists tensed instinctively.
He couldn't explain why, but he hated that man going anywhere near Haruhi. All night Arai had been staring at her like a cat stalking a mouse, hungrily and right under Hikaru's nose. He knew Arai could sense Hikaru's dislike, and he was revelling in it. Arai had Haruhi's trust and devotion, Hikaru didn't have that with her. But he knew he had something Arai didn't have. And that was Haruhi's interest. He could tell from the way her eyes darkened with lust when he brought his lips close to hers, and the way her breath came in laboured pants when he closed the gap between their bodies.
She didn't look at Arai like that. She looked at him in the same way you'd look at a brother or family member. Why couldn't Arai just take a hint?
As the music picked up, Arai turned Haruhi around in his arms and practically held her in a vice against him. Hikaru watched as he lowered his lips to her ear and said something to her. It was only when Haruhi's expression changed from elated and smiley to hesitant, and she started recoiling in his forceful grip - that Hikaru's feet carried him across to where they stood.
With a strong and angry shove to Arai's shoulder, Hikaru pushed the two of them apart, making sure Haruhi was shielded behind him.
"That's enough" Hikaru hissed.
Arai put his hands up in surrender, "Hey man, calm down"
"What did you say to her?" Hikaru demanded.
"Hikaru leave it" Haruhi spoke up behind him. He turned to look at her, she was swaying uncomfortably, her eyes rolling as if she were completely 'over it'.
"What did he say?"
"It doesn't matter, let's just go back to having a good time"
"Haruhi"
"Maybe I should go..." Arai said, in the most cowardly tone Hikaru had ever heard.
"Yeah. You should" Hikaru grit his teeth. Arai turned to make a swift exit, but before he could escape, Hikaru grabbed his upper arm, "Stay the fuck away from her. Do you hear me?"
Arai smirked, "Are you going to tell Haruhi the same?"
"After what I just saw I don't think it'll be a problem"
Arai shrugged, "I only asked her if she wanted to come back to mine. We used to have sleepovers all the time when we were kids...thought she might want to try a 'grown up' one"
That was it.
Hikaru lifted his arm to swing a punch directly into Arai's smug mouth. He wanted to mess up his pretty boy face and punish him for thinking he could take advantage of Haruhi whilst she was in the state she was. But just as he moved to do so, his brother's hand closed around his.
"You don't need that kind of press Hika" he murmured in his ear.
In that moment Hikaru couldn't give a shit if a story got out about him beating the hell out of this guy. He wanted ruined him. But he knew Kaoru was right.
Arai took that opportunity to slip away, disappearing to grab his jacket and slide out the door like a snake slithering through tall grass.
Hikaru let out a breath of anger.
"We need to go home" He said.
Kaoru nodded, then looked around to scope out the rest of the group, his eyes stopped when he looked over at the bar, "Uh, that might not be so easy"
"Hmm?"
Hikaru followed his gaze, settling on the same sight his brother had clocked onto. Haruhi, who appeared to be completely unphased by Arai's exit, was now sitting on top of the bar, throwing back shots the eager bartender poured for her.
"Great..." he sighed, "Haruhi, time to go" he stepped up to the bar, stopping right beside her as she swung her legs playfully off the table.
"Ohhh no" she pouted, "But I'm having fun"
"It's late, we have work to do tomorrow"
"I'll be fiiiiine" she smiled.
Hikaru rolled his eyes and reached out to grab her hands, she shoved him away.
"Nu-uh Mr Millionaire, I'm not leaving until I've had another drink"
"No, no more, you've had enough"
"Had enough? You're not my dad!"
"Haruhi come on now"
With a pout she crossed her arms.
"Haruhi" Hikaru said sternly, "You're making a scene"
"I'm not making a scene!" She snapped. Then clumsily, she began climbing to her feet, knees shaking and wobbling. She stood on the bar, towering above everyone, earning some drunken cheers from everyone across the club, "I'm making a public spectacle of myself!"
"That's not a good thing"
"Oh my god I love her" Kaoru laughed.
"You're not helping" Hikaru hissed, "you want me to come up there and get you?" he looked to Haruhi, who stood a good 2 feet taller than him. Those long legs he loved sooo much just swaying teasingly in his face.
"Maybe" Haruhi bit her lip.
She was toying with him, and the realisation woke up an animal inside him. In that moment he wanted to carry her out fireman style and take her to bed.
"One more drink" she pleaded.
"You don't need anymore"
"Here" Kyoya appeared out of nowhere, he handed her his glass which was about half full. Haruhi's eyes lit up as she grabbed it and gulped it down.
"Really?" Hikaru scolded him.
Kyoya shrugged, "You want her to come home, give the drunk what she wants"
"Mmmmm" Haruhi hummed in approval as she poured the last few drops onto her outstretched tongue. It conjured up so many x-rated images in Hikaru's head that he could only push back to a later date.
"Right. Can we go now?"
Haruhi smiled sleepily, "I guess"
"Good girl"
Hikaru offered her his hands, reaching for her to come down. Instead of taking them however, Haruhi swung her arms around his neck and threw herself into his arms, leaving Hikaru with no choice but to carry her down from the bar top.
She hummed happily into his neck, nuzzling her nose into his stubbled jaw and inhaling, "You smell so gooood. How do you always smell so...mmmm"
Hikaru shivered and tried to ignore how close she was, "Let's get you home sleeping beauty"
HARUHI
I rolled over with a groan, my voice coming out strangled - like shaking gravel in a maraca.
My head felt like it had 30kg weights strapped to it, with a full steel drum band opening for the Super Bowl inside.
Who let me have vodka last night?
Had to have been Arai, he knew how I got when I drank vodka. I'd go from 1-100 in 60 minutes or less.
I let my eyes creep open a crack, instantly regretting it as the light burned my iris'.
"Owwwww" I groaned.
A chuckle met my ears from across the room. I shot upright in bed, forcing my eyes open all the way. In the corner of the room, sat in the chair was Hikaru, looking as gorgeous as ever.
"Good morning" he smirked.
I squinted, "Uh...good morning"
"I'd ask how you're feeling but I think that might be a ridiculous question"
"Did I get hit by a train last night?" I replied.
"If that train was filled with shots then yes"
"Oh goooood" I moaned, "I didn't do anything stupid did it?"
Hikaru laughed, "I mean, apart from climbing on top of the bar, diving into my arms, and throwing up all over us both then...no, you were okay"
My mouth fell open, "I threw up on you?"
Hikaru shrugged, "Mostly you. I was putting you to bed and the flood gates opened"
I looked down at my clothes, only to see that I in fact wasn't wearing any. Just the turquoise underwear I'd been wearing the day before. I yelped and pulled the covers up over my chest.
"Don't worry" Hikaru stood up with a smile, "you took your own clothes off. It was..." he cleared his throat, "Quite a performance"
"Per...performance?"
He chuckled and sat down on the edge of the bed in front of me, "You tore your tank off and threw it across the room, then took about 20 minutes wrestling your jeans off. You then tried to take my clothes off, and after you managed to pull off my shirt you gave up, climbed onto the bed and begged me to tuck you in"
I buried my face into my hands, "Oh jeeeez"
He reached out and pulled my hands away, "Don't worry, no one else saw. Your secret is save with me"
"What happened to everyone else?" I mumbled.
"After I got you off the bar we called a driver and everyone went home"
"And how did you get stuck with me?"
"You didn't leave me much choice" he smirked, "You wouldn't let go of me. You even sat on my lap in the car"
Great.
The night gets worse and worse.
"You wouldn't let me leave the room after getting you in bed. I had to promise to stay in the chair"
"I made you sleep in that chair all night?" I groaned in embarrassment.
"I could have left after you passed out, but I chose to keep an eye on you"
I gave him a look, "Who are you and what did you do with Hikaru?"
Hikaru flashed a mischievous grin, "am I not allowed to be nice?"
"Of course you are" I replied, "I'm just not used to it..."
"Well, I'm a sucker for a damsel in distress" he winked, and my stomach did a turn. And not because I was hungover.
It was then that I noticed what he was wearing, "Is that my shirt?"
He glanced down at the oversized men's AC/DC t shirt, "As I said, I wanted to stay to keep an eye on you"
"You didn't even leave to get changed?"
He shrugged, "I thought you might wake up...I didn't want you wondering where I was..." I could tell by the way he said it that he wasn't used to speaking so selflessly. Maybe we were getting somewhere with this coaching thing.
"Thank you" I said, "Really, you didn't have to do all that"
He gave me a small smile, a genuine one. Then his eyes shifted downwards and he tensed, "Um...you uh..." he pointed down at my chest. Apparently I'd let go of the covers, and now my bra was on full display again.
"Shit, sorry" I readjusted.
"I wasn't complaining" he breathed, his eyes becoming hooded and dark with lust. Had he been...checking me out?
"I think I might...jump in the shower" I said.
A cold one...
Hikaru nodded, his eyes touching my mouth momentarily. For a few seconds we just stared at each other like starved lions sizing up a meal, not moving, not speaking. Then Hikaru stood, and shocked me by tugging the t shirt off over his head and throwing it down. His tight muscled chest rippled and tensed as he ran a hand through his hair. My eyes trailed down his torso, sliding over his delicious 8 pac stomach and zeroing in on the slither of hair that went south under the waistband of the men's sweats he wore.
My words stuck in my throat, "Wh...what are you d-doing?"
"Giving you your shirt back" he winked.
"R...right here...?"
"Well, it's hardly fair that I got something hot to look at and you didn't" a smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth.
My inner girly girl did summersaults. He thinks I'm hot. Why do I love that? Why do I like that he thinks I'm hot?
"And who says you're not a giver?" I chuckled.
"I love to give" he replied, "but if it's okay with you, I'll give you your pants back later"
Shame.
"Okay" I chuckled, feeling the blush heat my cheeks.
What the hell is happening here? Didn't we hate each other?
Uhhhh, why didn't I want him to go? I inwardly groaned.
After he left, it took me about 5 minutes to move. 5 minutes to uncloud my brain, and 5 minutes to rediscover how limbs worked.
My hungover body shook as I climbed out of bed and made my way over to the ensuite bathroom.
My reflection in the mirror was appalling. My hair was a bird's nest and my face was ghost white. I took a swig of mouthwash to rid the taste of old alcohol from my mouth, then sighed and rubbed my cheeks.
Why did I suddenly feel shitty that Hikaru was gone?
"Just because he was nice to you this morning doesn't mean he's a changed man" I whispered to myself. I remembered how bitter he'd always been, how rough and selfish he always spoke to me, and the destained look in his eye when ever he studied me and my appearance. Yes, he was kind to me. But tigers can't change their stripes. Not this quickly anyway.
A knock at the door brought me out of my musings. Before I could answer the door opened and there stood Hikaru, still shirtless, and with a look of determination on his face.
It barely dawned on me that I was still only wearing my turquoise bra and panties, I was too shocked to see him to care. I just stood there and stared at him.
"Did...did you forget something?" I asked, barely louder than a whisper.
His eyes held mine, "Yeah" he replied, "this"
Then his lips encased mine, swallowing any reply formulating inside me.
I responded instantly, throwing my arms around his neck and clinging to him, knowing that there was no way I could get him close enough to satisfy me. I moaned and his tongue entered my mouth, swirling around mine, tasting me. I felt his hands explore my body, gliding down my back to hold my ass in a grip that brought my hips flush against his. I could feel his need for me press against my stomach and my knees buckled in response.
Our lips parted with a gasp, but Hikaru's hold on me stayed just as tight. His muscles flexed under my palm, and his arms took all the weight off my legs. We stared at each other breathlessly, neither one of us knowing what to do or what to say.
All I knew was I didn't want to let go of him.
And that terrified me because I had no idea why.
"I need to shower" I blurted.
Hikaru's eyes widened, surprised, "O...oh okay"
Slowly, he unwound his arms, and I ignored how much I hated his absence. I tried my best not to meet his eyes because in that moment I was just so confused - I just wanted to be alone. I wanted him to go. I didn't have to say anything, because without a word, he left the room. Shutting the door behind him.
I groaned and slumped to the floor.
What's happening?