Happy leap day everyone! :) And surprise! I actually updated within a month! :O Gasp! Though it is a bit short.
Otaku's Melody: Lol yeah, when you're the one involved, it can be hard to tell. ^-^ Thank you for reading and reviewing! :) And for your sweet comment.
BizzyLizy: Lol so true. XD Thanks for reading and reviewing!
Neon Wish Likes Pine Trees: Yes for those ship names! :D Thank you for the review!
Hehehehehehehe...
"Hikaru," Kaoru said, poking his head into his brother's room. "Mom sent over movie tickets to that horror movie coming out on Saturday."
"Oh cool." Hikaru didn't look up from his DS.
Kaoru stepped into the room. "Wanna go? It's not like we have plans."
"I'm good," Hikaru said. "Invite someone else."
Kaoru stared at his brother. "But I thought you wanted to see this movie. Isn't the main character one of your favorite actors?"
"I'll watch it some other time. Invite someone else," Hikaru said.
Kaoru blinked and then sighed. He sat down next to Hikaru on the bed. "Hikaru, you don't have to do anything for me like this."
"Who said I was doing anything for you?" Hikaru said, glancing up with a cool gaze. "I just don't feel like going this Saturday."
"Hikaru!" Kaoru glomped his brother with a grin, knocking the two onto the bed. "Who should I invite then?"
Hikaru kept his eyes on the game. "Who do you think?"
"Hey Emi," Kaoru said on Thursday after the host club had closed for the day. He was holding two tickets in his hand. "My mom gave us tickets to see the premiere showing of this horror movie, but Hikaru doesn't want to go watch it. So, do you wanna come instead?" He smiled.
Emi stared at him. "Um, is this a dream?"
Kaoru chuckled. "I hope not, unless you're gonna say no."
Oh my God. No way. Is this for real? This isn't a dream? Her face split into a grin. "Really? I'd love to go, Kaoru-kun!"
He smiled. "That's great." He picked up his school bag. Hikaru was standing by the doorway, watching them with narrowed eyes and a small frown. "Then I'll see you on Saturday, six fifty, at the movie theater. Bye, Emi-chan!"
She waved back as the twins left.
Ryuu sighed, clapping a hand on her shoulder. "Good for you, sis. Now let's go home."
The two made their way out of the school. "You heard that, hm?" she said.
"Of course. You were louder than the PA system."
"What? I was not," she said with a frown. But wait, does that mean I have to watch a horror movie? But I'm not that good with horror movies. Oh no. I wasn't thinking when I accepted. Crap!
Kaoru kept sneaking smiles at her all Friday. Everytime, Emi bit her lip and tried to ignore her racing heart. Her cheeks were flushed almost for the entire day, and she was sure she'd burst with joy.
I can't handle this. He's too cute! She thought, looking away from him. I'm pretty sure he's caught me staring at him. God, I'm too obvious.
The darting glances stopped when the host club was in session though. The guests and Hikaru kept Kaoru busy.
"Okay, Emi-chan, pick your host for a hug!" Renge said with a grin. She was loving this job.
Emi smiled. "Haruhi-kun."
"Me?" Haruhi said, pointing at herself. Emi nodded and ran into the girl's arms. "Wah."
Ah, just as I expected. Haruhi-kun is so cute and fluffy! Emi grinned, burying her face into Haruhi's shoulder. She smells good.
"Time's up," Kyoya said.
Emi released Haruhi. "Thanks Haruhi-kun." Then she skipped off the stage. Kaoru was gazing at Haruhi, and Hikaru was yawning, leaning on his brother.
"So bold," Sumiko said, elbowing her friend.
Emi giggled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Thanks? It was kinda embarrassing."
"It looked cute," Sumiko said.
"Could I hug the Hitachiin twins? Like the two of them together at the same time?" one girl was saying to Kyoya.
"I apologize, Furuya-san," Kyoya said, "however you must choose only one person."
The girl pouted. "Aw, come on Kyoya. You could cut the time a bit, but I just want a hug from both of them at the same time."
"Hey we don't mind," Hikaru said. Kaoru nodded.
Kyoya sighed. "Then I shall appropriately cut the time in half."
The girl jumped into the twins' open arms. She closed her eyes and snuggled close. Sumiko snickered. "This is a sight to see."
Emi bit her lip and turned away. "Yeah." She hugged herself and rubbed her left arm. She felt cold. It's okay. I'll have Kaoru-kun all to myself tomorrow for at least two hours.
Emi found Kaoru standing at the movie theater door ten minutes before their agreed meeting time.
"Kaoru-kun, you sure are early," she said. She could feel herself stiffen as she approached, and her heart drumming away.
Kaoru chuckled. "So are you, Emi-chan."
He had a navy blue sweater vest on over a red and blue plaid shirt and burnt orange pants. Emi blushed. Ahh, as expected of the son of a fashion designer.
Kaoru smiled. "You're wearing a skirt."
Emi nodded, glancing down at her navy blue skirt and the pink sweater. She tucked some hair behind her ear. "Yeah."
"It looks nice on you," he said, still smiling.
She blushed and turned away. Oh my god, no. My heart can't handle this! "Thanks, Kaoru-kun. Oh. Do you wanna know what's cool about this skirt?" she asked. She looked up at him with a grin.
"What?" he said.
"It has pockets," she said, sticking her hands into them and waving them around.
He laughed. "That's cute."
Now what does that mean? The pockets are cute right? That's what he meant, right? She giggled. "Thanks? So what should we do since we're here so early?"
He shrugged. "Let's go in then."
The movie theater was packed with people. Some were dressed up as characters in the new horror movie. They got in line to purchase popcorn and drinks, then went to find seats. As they got situated and comfortable, there were two others outside of the theater room.
"What are you doing here?" Ryuu said. "I thought you didn't want to watch this movie."
"I want to," Hikaru said, "and I thought you were scared of this horror stuff."
Ryuu frowned and sipped his drink. "I'm not a huge fan of it, that's all."
"You're just here to spy on them," Hikaru said.
Ryuu almost spat out his drink. "What? No, I'm not. Why would I do that?"
"Whatever," Hikaru said, turning away and heading into the theater. "I'd be more surprised to not find you here."
Ryuu followed, huffing and scowling. "Well how could I trust that little devil with Emi? What if he makes a move on her?"
Hikaru jabbed a finger at Ryuu. "Kaoru would never do that. He's a perfect gentleman."
"Then why are you here?" Ryuu said. "You're worried about something too, aren't you?"
Hikaru looked away and crossed his arms. "I want to see this movie. That's it."
Ryuu clicked his tongue as they climbed up the steps. "Where should we sit then?" he said.
"Don't sit with me," Hikaru said.
"We're both here already, so we may as well sit together," Ryuu said. "Let's sit right behind them." They were four rows above the other pair now.
"Why? Isn't that too obvious?" Hikaru said as they slid into a row.
"Well if we sit at an angle, they can easily look around and see us. But it's harder to look directly behind you, right? You'd have to turn all the way around," Ryuu said.
"Fine." Hikaru sighed and dropped into a seat. People were streaming in and filling up the vacant seats.
"Perfect." Ryuu smiled.
"That's creepy," Hikaru said. Ryuu's smile turned upside down. "Hey give me some of your drink, and I'll give you some popcorn. Seriously, who comes to a theater and only buys a drink?"
"Shut up," Ryuu mumbled but handed the drink over. "I don't think you can talk considering you only got popcorn."
Hikaru shrugged. "It's more delicious."
Meanwhile, four rows ahead, the other half of the twins were eating popcorn and watching the advertisements. Emi wasn't paying attention. She couldn't because of the boy sitting at her side.
"Hey, do you know how scary this movie is going to be?" she said. "Like, on a scale of one to ten with ten being so frightening everyone will pass out?"
Kaoru chuckled. "What kind of scale is that? I heard it's pretty good though, so it shouldn't be too bad."
"Oh." Emi shoveled more popcorn into her mouth. God I better not scream and embarrass myself.
Kaoru turned to her. "If you get scared-"
The lights dimmed and an announcement came on to tell everyone to silence their phones. Emi glanced at him. "What?"
He smiled. "Ah, nevermind. It's okay."
Okay. That better not have been something important, or I'll be so mad. This isn't a manga after all, so nothing as cliche as that could have happened.
"Hikaru, I'm starting to regret this," Ryuu whispered to his companion as the logos flared to life on the screen.
"Get out then," Hikaru said, "but leave your drink. This popcorn is salty."
"You're not helping," Ryuu said.
"I don't intend to."
Ryuu sighed and slumped low in his seat. The main characters had appeared and everything was light, bright, and happy.
Emi gnawed on her straw for a good duration of the movie. She jumped at every scare, and sometimes small shrieks would escape her too. At one point, when blood was spewing everywhere, she blocked her vision with her arms and looked to her left. Kaoru was staring at her.
Emi blushed but stared back. "Kaoru-kun?"
He leaned in to whisper, "Was this movie a bad idea?"
"No," she said with a smile. Then there was screaming and she jumped again. Kaoru chuckled. He scooted closer to her. They hadn't lowered the armrest between them. She scooted closer too.
"You're not scared at all?" she asked.
"Hm?" He glanced at her and shrugged. "It's okay."
She returned her gaze to the big screen, but she could feel his arm just a centimeter away. So close. Oh my God. I am totally dreaming, because this-this is so amazing. I can't believe this is happening!
She couldn't tell whether her heart was pounding because of Kaoru or because of the horror movie. It had the same effect anyway.
"I can't do this," Ryuu said, halfway through the movie. "Oh God, this is terrible."
"I thought it'd be better than this," Hikaru said. "Like seriously, how did they not see that coming?"
"Let's get out of here," Ryuu said.
"And go where?" Hikaru said, glancing at him.
"There's an arcade nearby," Ryuu said, "with things to shoot."
Hikaru looked at the screen and then at Ryuu, who was clutching the drink in his hand like it was his lifeline. He shrugged. "Sure."
The two snuck out much to the annoyance of other moviegoers sitting in their row. It was only when they were outside when they remembered something.
"Dammit!" Ryuu said, clapping his hands over his head. "I totally forgot Kaoru and Emi were inside."
"Whatever, they'll be fine. I didn't see anything," Hikaru said, "not that anything would have happened anyway."
"You sure you didn't see anything? Cause I really wasn't watching."
Hikaru shrugged. "We'll just come back when the movie's over. Where's this arcade?"
"Over here." So the other half of the twins wandered into the streets of the city.
An hour later, they returned and watched as people streamed out of the theater. They were sitting by the doorway, hidden by fake plants and other people. "Hey, are you sure you got the right time?" Hikaru asked.
"Yeah," Ryuu said.
"Is this the time when the credits are over or when the main movie is over? Cause Kaoru isn't the type to sit and watch the credits."
"Uh." Ryuu looked up. "I think it's the main movie."
Hikaru sighed and stood up. "They're probably gone now. Whatever, I'm gonna go home." He headed towards the entrance.
"What?" Ryuu said. "Fine. See you then."
"You're not going to go?" Hikaru said, glancing behind him.
Ryuu stood and followed. "I'm going. I'm going. I'll probably walk back."
"Why don't you get a ride?" Hikaru asked as they exited the building and entered the cool autumn air.
"Cause Emi's gonna want one," Ryuu said, "and our house isn't far."
"Hm. Okay," Hikaru said and climbed into the car. "See you later." He waved and closed the car door in Ryuu's face.
Ryuu scowled and stuck out his tongue. "See ya, jerk."
The window rolled down and Hikaru stuck his tongue out too. "Idiot."
"Hey!" Ryuu said as the car drove away.
Meanwhile, Kaoru and Emi were pressed against each other, watching the credits roll by. Maybe there's a post credit scene. No, who am I kidding? I just want to sit here a bit longer with him.
The screen turned black and the lights returned.
"What'd you think?" Kaoru said as the two stood and gathered their belongings.
"It wasn't bad," Emi said, "but kinda cliche."
"Pretty scary, huh?" he said with a smile.
"You didn't seem scared at all though, Kaoru-kun," she said. They headed down the aisle and the stairs. The theater was empty now.
"I've seen a few horror movies before," he said.
"I have too," she said.
"But you don't like them?" he said as they reached the lobby.
She shook her head. "Not really. They're okay."
"Then next time, you pick the movie," he said, smiling.
Next time? There's gonna be a next time? Emi smiled back. "Sure. Do you like action movies, Kaoru-kun?"
"Yeah, those are fun." They stepped outside. The sun was gone, and the sky was a dark blue. The streetlights were on, illuminating the people everywhere. "What about you, Emi?"
"Yeah, I like action movies, and comedy ones," she said. They started walking down the sidewalk, towards Emi's house.
"Oh there's a really good comedy movie coming out soon. Like in November, I think," Kaoru said.
Emi smiled. "Maybe we could watch it together then."
"Yeah."
Seriously? You're kidding right? Would it be alarming if I pinched myself right now? But there's no way this is happening. How is this happening? Emi reached forward and pinched her cheek. It hurt.
Kaoru chuckled. "What are you doing?"
She chuckled too, rubbing the back of her neck. "Just wanted to make sure I wasn't dreaming."
He laughed some more. "You're funny, Emi. If this was a dream, I'd be really disappointed."
Emi stared at him with her mouth open. No, this is definitely a dream. Definitely! She looked away. "No, there's no way this is happening," she said.
"What?" he said, leaning forward to look her in the eye.
"No-Nothing," she said. "So, where are we going?"
"Hm?" Kaoru looked up at the cars and the people they were passing. He shrugged. "I don't know. I was just following you."
She giggled. "Really, Kaoru-kun?"
He nodded. "Really."
"Then," she said. Will this be asking too much? Will this be too bold? She swallowed her fear away and glanced at the boy next to her. "Will you walk me home, Kaoru-kun?"
He smiled. "I'd love to."
Yup. This is a dream, but even if it is, I'll just enjoy this. There's no way Kaoru-kun loves me, right?
They talked about movies as they walked. It was a fall evening with cool winds and rustling leaves. The sky was clear of clouds.
If only we could do this all the time, she thought. They were reaching the park, which meant her house wasn't far. I guess this is it. She paused at the edge of the park. There was one girl sitting on the swing. She looked like a high schooler with straight dark brown hair. There was a coffee cup in her hands, and she was staring at the ground.
"Kaoru-kun," Emi said.
He stopped and turned to her with that faint, small smile always on his lips. "What?"
Since this is a dream, even though it doesn't feel like a dream, I can tell him right? She stared at him. At his fluffy auburn hair, sticking up the way it always did, and his bright amber eyes. I'm going to be interrogated on Monday again. I just know it. So if I ask him out and he rejects me, I can just tell them that, and they'll stop bothering me.
"What is it, Emi?" he said in that soft voice of his.
If I tell him, things will turn awkward though. We won't be able to do this again. But if this is a dream, he'll say yes, and we'll go out. And I'll wake up feeling happy but disappointed.
This isn't a dream. Is it?
"Kaoru-kun," she said. She couldn't tear her eyes off of him.
"Yes?" he said, raising his eyebrows.
How patient. How kind. Let's put an end to this. Once I get rejected, I'll be able to move on. I'll be able to go crush on someone else, someone who isn't a host, someone who won't cause girls to come and question me. Besides, those girls said I had a chance, and there's only one way to find out if that's true or not.
She licked her lips and swallowed in preparation. She took a deep breath, examining her shoes. I can do this. This is my first time, but I can do this. She looked up at Kaoru and his expectant gaze.
"Kaoru-kun," she said, "I like you."
Hehehehehehehe...
*More evil chuckling*
But anyway, please tell me what you think! Did this seem sudden to you? Was this fluff overdose? (I hope so haha) Ready for some more fluff? (I hope so again XP) Did you see this coming? Do you think this is all a dream? :D
Hehehehehe... I'll do my best to update next week too, but no guarantees.
Thanks for reading! :)