Almost 2 months! :O It's been a while. Time sure is passing quickly. I hope you all are doing well and enjoying the holidays!

Neon Wish Likes Pine Trees: Lol thanks for your constant support and reviewing! :) I hope you like this chapter.

Guest: Thanks for reviewing! :D Do you have a name/pen name?

JadeCrispy: Idk if he'll end up with someone. :P But if he did, it'd be a female OC. Thanks for always reviewing! :D

Otaku's Melody: The answer question game is still ongoing. It happens near the end of the hosting day, and every guest gets one chance per week. I just haven't been putting it in too much. :) Thanks for reading and reviewing!

BizzyLizy: Lol yup. Thank you lots for reading and reviewing every time! :)

Guest: Really, no HikaRyuu, sorry. _ But there will be bromance moments, kinda like how there are for HikaKao. Thanks for the review! :D

Okay, here's the chapter!

It was finally the weekend. Ryuu could sleep in and wouldn't have to worry about touching girls.

Of course, the Host Club was a master at foiling peaceful plans.

Ring! Ring!

Ryuu knew that it was Tamaki calling before he picked up the phone. "Damn you, Tamaki, what do you want?"

"How mean, Ryuu!" Tamaki wailed. "Can a father not call his darling Lost Son?"

"I'm gonna hang up if you don't say anything good soon," Ryuu said. His eyes were still closed, lying on his side in bed.

"Then you may as well hang up now," Hikaru said with a snicker. "Tono never says anything good."

"Wah, you guys are all so mean!" Tamaki said, starting to sniffle.

There was a sigh. "Tamaki, spit it out already." It was Kyoya, no doubt peeved at Tamaki for interrupting his sleep.

"Let's visit Haruhi!" Tamaki replied. He sounded immediately revived at the prospect of seeing Haruhi on a weekend.

"Ugh, not again," Ryuu said.

"Sounds good," Hikaru said.

"Fine." Kyoya sighed.

"I'll bring cake!" Honey chimed in.

"Great!" Tamaki said. "I'm already on my way to pick Kyoya up."

"You're what?" Kyoya said.

"Let's all go together," Tamaki continued, sounding so pleased. "Ryuu, you too."

"God, no. Shut up and leave me-"

"I'll come and pick you up next," Tamaki said.

"No-"

"If you don't come, we're taking Emi with us," Hikaru said.

"Why?" Ryuu said. "Why do you even want me to come?"

"Cause we're a big family, Ryuu!" Tamaki said. There was a click and then Tamaki said, "Now we're on our way to get you!"

This is like a horror movie. Except I know when the bad guy's gonna jump out at me, and there's nothing I can do. Aghhh.

"Nooooo," Ryuu just mumbled, burying his head under the pillow.

Ding-dong!

Damnit, how close does Kyoya live for them to get here so quickly? Ryuu threw off the covers, changed clothes, brushed his teeth, and ran down the stairs.

"Ryuu-kun, your friends." Akimi was standing at the open door.

"Hello Ryuu!" Tamaki said with a grin and wave. Kyoya was leaning against the door frame, eyes closed and arms crossed.

"Hey, let's go then." Ryuu slid on a jacket.

"Wait, you're leaving right now?" Akimi said. Ryuu nodded. "Let me fetch some bread for you to take then."
"It's fine, Akimi-nee-chan," Ryuu said, already slipping his shoes on.

"It is not fine!" she called from the kitchen. "Breakfast is-"

"-The most important meal. I know, I know." Ryuu rolled his eyes. She came back carrying a plastic bag with toast inside.

"Stay safe and have fun," she said, patting him on the arm.

"Thanks." He nodded at her. "Don't tell Emi where I went."

"Eh?" she said. Her smile turned into a confused frown, but the door closed and he was gone.

About an hour later, Ryuu was crouched in front of a window, staring at Haruhi, Benio, and other Lobelia students practicing. And Haruhi was terrible. She was expressionless and as stiff as a robot.

He sighed. "You know what, I'm going-"

Kyoya smirked. "You don't want to see how this plays out?"

"Ryuu-chan, you don't want to save Haru-chan?" Honey said. His eyes were wide and pleading, delivering a swift blow of guilt.

"I-I- She already has you guys, so no worries!" Ryuu made a move to dash away, when a hand grabbed his shirt.

"Hey," Ranka said. His eyes were narrowed. "Is Haruhi not important to you?"

"Eh?" Ryuu squeaked. "Ah, sure, but-"

"Just sit down and watch, Ryuu!" Tamaki said, yanking the younger boy down to the ground.

"Ah, hello?" Honey said into a phone. "Oh, we're at Lobelia, Emi-chan!"

"Honey?!" Ryuu said, reaching for the third year. "What are you doing?"

Honey turned away from Ryuu, still grinning. "Yeah, everyone's here! Haru-chan's going to star as the heroine in a tragic play!"

What the heck? Ryuu collapsed on the ground. It's hopeless. I'll never be able to win against the Host Club.

A moment later, Honey got off the phone and smiled at Ryuu. "Emi-chan's coming!"

"Darn it," Ryuu grumbled.

"Newbies! Don't leave the line without permission." The Host Club turned to face a crowd of Benibara fans. "If you want to join the Beinbara Group, you must not disrupt group activities. Taking your own lead is strictly prohibited. Now we'll practice the greeting together. Good morning, Benibara-sama."

"Good morning, Benibara-sama," the Host Club said with the rest of the fans.

"Hey, Ryuu," Kaoru said, as they practiced. "Can I have your permission to ask Emi out?"

"What?" Ryuu said, turning to the younger twin. "What the hell are you talking about?"

Kaoru gulped. "I just-"

Ryuu turned away. "You don't need my permission, idiot. What you need is Emi's. This isn't the nineteen hundreds and I'm her dad or something. Stupid."

"Oh." Kaoru relaxed and then smiled. "True. Well, it's not like I'm going to ask anytime soon. I've still got a long way to go."

"Are you kidding me?" Ryuu said, again staring at Kaoru incredulously. When Kaoru just looked at him, wide-eyed and frozen, Ryuu turned away and muttered, "Whatever, idiot."

"What?" Kaoru's mouth dropped some more.

Laughter rang through, silencing their greetings for Benibara, and someone pushed through the two neat lines towards the Host Club. "What are you guys doing?" Emi said, giggling and bumping into Ryuu.

"Emi," Ryuu said.

"Emi!" Kaoru said too, blushing.

"Emi-chan!" Honey beamed and waved at her.

"How'd you get in here so easily?" Tamaki asked.

Emi shrugged, holding a Benibara t-shirt in her hand. "I told them I wanted to check out the school, and they let me in."

"The benefits of being a girl," Hikaru said with a sigh.

"Are you two siblings?" Ranka said, pointing at Ryuu and Emi.

The two exchanged glances and then said, "Cousins."

"Hey!" the leader of the chants said. "Get in line! We're not done practicing yet!" The Host Club scrambled back into formation, while Emi slipped off her jacket to put on the t-shirt.

"What are you guys doing?" she whispered.

"We're infiltrating Lobelia," Hikaru replied.

"I can see that. I mean, aren't you guys trying to save Haruhi-kun?"

"Yeah, duh," Hikaru said.

"Then what are you guys doing here?"

"We're trying not to get found out," Kaoru said. "You know, blending in. It was Ranka's idea." He jabbed a thumb in said person's direction.

"Is that Haruhi-kun's dad?" Emi asked.

"Yup," the Hitachiin twins said in unison.

"Wow!"

"Okay, let's take a break!" the leader said. "So what do you guys love the most about Benibara-sama?"

Ranka burst into a long list, complete with the classic fangirling posture and a squeal.

"He's good," Emi said.

"A natural among girls," the twins said.

"A pro, as expected," Tamaki said. But the moment the Host Club heard about the "Assembly of Maidens behind the gym," they took off towards the auditorium, disregarding the shouts of protest from the fans.

They snuck their way through the aisles of seats, heading closer and closer to the stage.

"Oh, yeah," Ranka said as they crouched behind some seats. "Where did Kyoya-kun go?" They looked around, but the cool type had disappeared.

"Ah, there's Kyo-chan!" Honey pointed towards the sound and lighting booth up above, and everyone turned to look. There he was indeed, being shown around by a school staff member.

"That bastard," Tamaki mumbled.

"He sure knows how to make his move," Kaoru said.

"How sly," Emi said.

What had started out as a distant sound began to grow louder, and the doors to the auditorium burst open. Fangirls poured in, screaming and squealing, while dashing for seats. The Host Club darted to the side, avoiding the crush of fans.

"We'll just have to save Haruhi after the show," Tamaki said as the curtains lifted.

Haruhi stood in the center of the stage, in a pink dress, while a song began to play. Her hair was in pigtails, and everyone tensed at the sight of her, prepared for her adorable face.

"Heavy!" they all cried out at the same time, cringing at the thick layers of makeup piled on her skin.

"How could they do that to her?" Emi said, clamping her hands over her eyes.

"They need a new makeup artist," Ryuu grumbled.

"It's so painful, huh?" the Hitachiin twins said while crying with Honey. Tamaki stood frozen, too shocked to move or even say anything. Even Mori frowned, shoulders slumping slightly.

"Damn it!" Tamaki said. "I'm getting you out of here right now-"

"Wait," Ranka said, grabbing his shoulder. "Look at Haruhi's face. Doesn't it look more lit-up than during rehearsal?"

"You-You're right," Tamaki said, taking another look at Haruhi as she lip-synched. "Her cheeks are rosier."

"That's just cause of the makeup," Hikaru said.

"And she's glistening so much," Tamaki continued.

"Isn't that cause of the lighting?" Kaoru said.

"Or maybe it's her sweat," Ryuu said in a quiet voice, earning a giggle from Emi.

"You're right. If this is what Haruhi wants to do, then we have no right to interfere," Tamaki said with a sigh. "For now, I guess we'll just let the show go on."

Emi grinned. "Yay. I wanna see this musical."

"Really?" Ryuu quirked an eyebrow at her. "It's just a bunch of lesbian girls though."

She jabbed him in the ribs with an elbow. "That has nothing to do with the quality of the play."

So they stood there, watching the show continue and Haruhi's monotonous "Frederick-sama!"

"Haruhi!" Tamaki stood on the stage, arms raised. The girl stared down at Tamaki from high up on the platform. "Come on!" Then she pressed her lips together, gathered the folds of her dress in her hands, and leaped.

"Waaa." Emi buried her face into Ryuu's chest while trembling. "Tell me she's okay, Ryuu."

"She'll be fine," he said, hugging her.

"Haruhi!" Tamaki's eyes shone with joy for a few seconds before he was completely crushed by Haruhi.

"She's fine," Ryuu said. "Tamaki cushioned her with his body."

"What?" Emi turned around to the sight of a blue-faced Tamaki. Not long after, the Zuka club began pursuing Haruhi across the stage. "What is going on? Won't their fans be disappointed with this kind of performance?"

She jogged towards the stage, where the Hitachiin twins stood watching. Tamaki was still face planted on the ground.

"Haruhi-kun," she called, as Haruhi raced by.

"I just want to study quietly at home!" the said girl wailed while running back the other way.

Poor girl, always getting dragged into rich people's selfish desires, Emi thought. Then she stepped on a banana peel and went sailing through the air. Noooo! She watched as the twins came nearer and nearer her face. "Watch out!" She flailed her arms, but it wasn't stopping her fall.

Emi crashed right into Kaoru, and the two fell to the floor. "So-Sorry!" She sat up and pushed her glasses back up her nose. "Are you okay, Kaoru-kun?" she asked, getting off of him.

"Yeah, I'm fine," he said while sitting up. He smiled. "Are you?"

She nodded. "I'm fine."

"Why are you calling her Haruhi-kun now?" Kaoru asked.

"Eh?" Emi glanced at him and then looked away. Talk about random? Or sudden? "Ah, well… It's kinda weird, since I call everyone else by their first names." She chuckled, scratching her cheek. "A-And, I don't like Haruhi-kun anymore, so..."

"Oh really?" Kaoru leaned forward, while Hikaru sighed and walked back towards Ryuu, Mori, and Honey.

"Yeah. But, Kaoru-kun, don't you like Haruhi-kun?" Emi asked, sneaking another look at him.

He turned to the stage, watching as banana peels flew out of nowhere and all of the Zuka Club and Haruhi slipped and crashed onto the ground. "Yes."

Emi's smile faded and she stared at her shoes. "Ah. Haha, of course."

"But not in the way you're thinking," he said, looking at her. He smiled. "I just like her as a friend."

"Really?" Emi smiled back.

He nodded. "Yup."

Her heart was pounding away. What was she doing sitting here talking to him? She should be rushing over to help Haruhi get away, or maybe heading over to revive Tamaki, or maybe just going home with Ryuu. But something kept her rooted in place, even as the Zuka Club and Haruhi climbed to their feet.

"K-Kaoru-kun," she said, glancing at him.

"Yes?" He smiled.

She swallowed. "I-"

"Hm?"

Her eyes widened, and she glanced at the stage again. What am I doing? I was about to confess, wasn't I? Is now even a good time?

"Did you have something to say?" Kaoru asked, scooting closer to her.

No no no. She stared at him and shook her head. What am I doing? Am I really going to confess, right now? Here and now? He doesn't like Haruhi-kun. Can I give it a shot? Risk the bullies and the ostracizing for him? Isn't it too soon?

Then she sighed. "Nothing. Nevermind."

Kaoru stood up, dusted off his knees, and then held a hand out for her. "Let's get off the floor then," he said with a grin.

Emi chuckled. Oh God. I sound so nervous. Her palm was sweaty and she hastily wiped it against her jeans before placing her hand in his. She popped up onto her feet with a grin on her face and rubbing the back of her head.

Meanwhile, not too far away, watching the scene play out were the counterpart of the twins.

"They're so in love with each other, huh?" Ryuu said, dropping into an empty seat and leaning his forearms on the seat in front of him.

"Yup," Hikaru said and sat down beside him.

Ryuu sighed, then rested his forehead on his arms. "This sucks."

"Yeah." Hikaru nodded.

"I think it's great!" Honey said, standing off to the side, beaming. "Aren't they so cute together?"

Ryuu glanced at Honey. "Honey-senpai, do you know?"

Honey looked at Ryuu while maintaining his childish smile. "Know what?" Then he turned to Mori. "Come on, Takashi. Let's go get Tama-chan." Mori nodded, and nodded once at Ryuu and Hikaru before following after his cousin.

"He totally knows," Ryuu muttered, watching Honey skip away. "He called Emi here on purpose. What a sneaky little guy."

Hikaru let out a long sigh and leaned his chin in his right palm, elbow propped up against the armrest. The two had their gazes on Emi and Kaoru grinning and giggling at each other. "Things are gonna just get worse from this point on."

"That's a strong word you're using there, Hikaru," Ryuu said.

"When they finally get together, they're gonna be that super lovey-dovey couple that everyone loves cause they're cute together but hate at the same time cause they're freaking annoying."

Ryuu chuckled. "So true. I can see that happening."

"And we're gonna have to deal with most of it," Hikaru said. "What's so even good about her anyway? She's a fangirl. She reads BL, and she likes it. She looks like a nerd and has terrible handwriting."

"What?" Ryuu sat up. "Emi is awesome. More like, what's so great about him?" He jabbed a finger at Kaoru. "He acts like he's in love with you to be popular with the girls. And he's the bottom in that act."

"What's wrong with that?" Hikaru said, sitting up as well. "At least Kaoru is cute."

Ryuu's eyes narrowed. "Are you blind? Emi is obviously so much cuter."

Hikaru rolled his eyes. "You're so stupid. At least Kaoru doesn't have to deal with bullies, and even if he did, he wouldn't use some weird fangirling tactic to get rid of them."

"What?" Ryuu said.

"What, you didn't know?" Hikaru asked.

"What bullies?" Ryuu grabbed Hikaru's shirt. "Tell me!"

"Why don't you ask her yourself?" he replied.

"Are you two fighting?" Emi said, as she and Kaoru approached them. "Let's go home. Haruhi-kun already left with her dad, and Kyoya-senpai's driving Tamaki-senpai home."

Ryuu let go of Hikaru's shirt and turned to her. "Emi, what is this about bullies? And some fangirling tactic to, uh, get rid of them?"

Emi stared at him and then at Hikaru. "What-"

"I saw." He shrugged.

"So something did happen." Ryuu stood up. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Emi took a step back. "It-It wasn't anything serious, Ryuu. You don't have to get so worked up about it."

"Worked up? But-" He looked her in the eye. "What about what happened that-"

"It won't happen again!" she said, narrowing her eyes.

"How do you know that?" he asked.

"We're at Ouran," she said.

"So? You're involved with a bunch of popular boys." Ryuu gestured at Kaoru.

"Wait, what's going on?" Kaoru asked.

"Emi attracts bullies the way honey attracts bees," Hikaru said, getting to his feet to join Kaoru's side.

"No I don't," Emi said, frowning. "They were just saying that I had to remember that I don't stand a chance with any Host."

"Except you obviously do," Ryuu said, waving again at Kaoru. He blushed, but she didn't see it.

"Ryuu stop making everything so… Ahhh." She stomped her foot several times. "You're always so melodramatic and overprotective and you overreact too much."

"No I don't." He frowned. "And if I do, it's with good reason."

She scowled. "We'll discuss this later, okay? For now, let's go home."

"Fine," Ryuu said. Then he glanced at Kaoru.

"Bye," Emi said to the Hitachiin twins with a wave.

Hikaru waved back. "Bye."

"See ya," Kaoru said, smiling.

She smiled back.

They had another fight when they got home. It got so bad that Akimi had to step in.

"What is going on?" she said, pulling the two of them apart. They were glaring at each other and out of breath from all the yelling.

"Nothing," Emi said. "He's just being a drama queen."

"It is not nothing. You're understating everything."

"Whatever," she said and turned away. "Just leave me alone, Ryuu!" Then she stomped up the stairs to her bedroom and slammed the door.

"She's being bullied," Ryuu said to Akimi, "and she won't let me do anything about it."

Akimi sighed. "Why don't you cool off first, Ryuu, and then we'll talk about it some more."

"Fine." He grabbed a jacket and went outside.

"Wait, I didn't mean it that way," Akimi said, racing to the doorway, but he was already walking down the driveway. "Did you bring your phone?"

He held his cellphone up in the air.

"Be careful and come back for dinner," she called after him.

Yeah, yeah. He unlocked the gate and stepped through onto the sidewalk. Then he turned left and trudged away to the park nearby. It was around six when he arrived, and the sun was starting to set, streaking the sky with orange and red. The park was a simple one, with a set of two swings, a sandbox, and a play structure with one slide.

It was empty of any children; they were all home, preparing to eat dinner. Ryuu was about to sit on the swings when he saw someone bent near the edges of the park, digging in the dirt. She wasn't a child. In fact, she looked to be his age and maybe older. She was in a knee-length apple green skirt and a brown sweater. There was a box next to her, and she was digging and digging.

She stopped to wipe some sweat off her brow and spotted him standing there, staring at her. "Hello," she said, and then went back to digging. It was a round hole and not very deep. She set the spade aside and opened the box. Then she reached a bare hand in and pulled out a spider.

What the hell? Ryuu took a step back before getting a better look at the creature in her hands. It was lying on its side, curled up, and it wasn't moving. A dead spider? That doesn't make it better!

He watched her set the spider in the hole gently. She clapped her hands together, closed her eyes, and murmured something. Then she began tossing the dirt back over.

Oh damn, I just met some loony who likes to bury spiders in parks where little children run around and play!

Ryuu turned around and started back home, when her voice stopped him. "Thanks for giving Yi-kun a moment of silence."

What? No no no, please don't talk to me. He slowly turned and shook his head. "I-I-"

"His name is Yi-kun," she said, gesturing at the mound by her feet.

He raised his eyebrows at her. "Uh. So you - Is that a pet?"

"Yi-kun?" she said and then smiled. "I suppose. He's part of my research, actually."

Research? Okay, I'm talking to a crazy girl who researches spiders but looks like a high schooler? "Cool," he said, nodding. "That's-That's really nice of you to bury him, like that." Even if it is at a public park where little children run around and play.

Her smile grew wider. "Thanks. It's the least I can do for them."

"Do you, like, cut into them or something?" he asked.

"Oh no." She shook her head. "I just observe them. I'm currently researching how they spin their webs, the webs themselves, and how we could possibly use them."

"Oh, now that's cool." He nodded. "So you're, like, just out of college?"

"Two years out now," she said with a smile. "How about you? You look like a high schooler."

Ryuu looked down at his feet. "Ah, yeah." He looked back up. "You do too, actually."

She giggled. "That's probably because I'm nineteen."

"Nineteen?" His jaw dropped. He pointed at her. "Hang on, but-"

"I skipped a few grades," she said with a smile. She pressed her fingertips together and pushed her palms apart and then back again.

"No kidding," he said. He took another look at her. She had long, straight dark brown hair that fell past her shoulders and side bangs. Her eyes were bright and warm, and she was staring at him with a smile.

"You… come here often?" she said.

"Not really," he said. "I was-" Crap! I can't just show up and then walk away. Or can I? "-Uh, just on my way. To a store."

She tilted her head. "What store? What are you going to buy?"

Aw shit! This is why you don't lie. Like shit! But it's okay, cause we probably won't meet again. "Uh, just, like, a drink," he said.

She smiled. "That's wonderful."

What? She makes it seem like I'm donating millions to starving children or something. "No, it's just, you know, buying a drink."

"I think it's wonderful," she said, gazing at the ground. Then her head jerked up. "Oh, I shouldn't keep you any longer. It was nice to meet you."

"Oh, yeah. Same here." He nodded at her and started for away from the park and home. "Bye."

She smiled and waved. "Good-bye."

What a weirdo. A smart weirdo. He thought as he trekked towards town. Damn. Should I really go to a convenience store and buy a drink? It's starting to sound like a good idea. It's kinda far though. Whatever. Let's do that.

Thoughts on the new OC? I'll try updating more now that I'm on winter break and school is (sorta, hopefully) calming down but lol when does school ever calm down.

Share your thoughts on this chapter! It helps me know like what's good what's bad, etc. And, as always, thanks for reading. :)