Chapter 3
Beach time!
The host club members were sitting in the music room, either working on school work, or eating cake. Haruhi sat at her regular "Thinking desk" while Kai laid lazily on the couch, cuddling with her pillow.
"So, you guys ready for the beach?" screamed Honey, mouth full of cake as he ran up to Haruhi.
"The beach?" she asked, shaking her head in disbelief.
"Of course silly" said the twins, getting up from looking over Kai's shoulder.
"But why?" asked Kai, groaning into her pillow.
"Don't you remember what you said?" asked Hikaru, spitting his tongue at her.
"You said you'd like to go to the beach" said Kaoru, leaning on his brother.
"This must have been when I hurt my wrist. Must have been the pain talking" said Kai, returning to her book and ignoring the twins.
She was doing her best to not look them in the eyes after what happened at the resort. First they flirt with her, and then they get concerned over her injury. What the heck is she supposed to think? It's not like she should care anyways. She wasn't their type, and there were TWO of them. Two more than she could handle.
"You said it. Now, we brought some swim suits for you two to choose from" they said, pulling Kai up from her thoughts, and dragging Haruhi to the hundreds of swim suits on display.
Honey ran up and chose a pretty green one, and said,
"I think this one would look cute on Kai-Chan".
The twins nodded and said "Great choice Sempai!".
"Not going to happen. Wouldn't want to give you guys heart attacks, because where oh where would I be without you guys?" she asked sarcastically.
They scowled at her and said "Just wait pet, just you wait".
Kai spat her tongue at them, and then went back to reading.
Honey grabbed another suit, and said,
"How about this blue one for Haru-chan?".
The twins chuckled and said "I don't think you get it Sempai. Haruhi is as flat as a cutting board. That swim suit would only upset her because it draws attention to lacking feminine physique. That's why we carefully selected this two piece suit. It carefully hides the fact that she's so flat-chested".
The suit was a light pink, with ruffles galore. Haruhi sighed in defeat, while Kai laughed rolled on the floor in hysterical laughter.
Tamaki stormed over and yelled "You punks had better stop sexually harassing my little girl!".
"So we're not going to the beach" asked the twins, hiding under a table.
Tamaki rolled his eyes and asked "Who said that we're not going?".
"Really? So you want to go after all?" the twins asked, mischief glinting in their eyes.
"Can Usa-chan come too?" asked Honey, looking worried that he couldn't.
"I don't see a problem with that" said Kyouya, addressing Honey's question while looking at his clip board.
"Mmm" agreed Mori, standing around looking stoic as always.
"Huh? We're really going to go?" asked Haruhi and Kai, jumping up and glaring.
Tamaki smiled and said "Why not? Let's go to the beach!".
"So why did we come to Okinawa?" asked the twins, complaining on the drive to the beach.
"Because, Kyouya's family owns a beach here" explained Tamaki, obviously in high spirits.
"Yeah" said Mori, nodding in agreement.
"Why couldn't we have gone to the Caribbean?" the twins asked, and Kyouya chuckled.
"You really think commoners like Kai and Haruhi have passports?" he asked.
"Oh yeah your right" stated the twins, voices monotonous.
"You do realize I can hear what you're saying right?" asked Haruhi, rolling her eyes at them.
"I do have a passport thank you!" Kai said, glaring as she trudged through the sand. Haruhi laughed as she struggled to keep up with her pace.
Once reaching the beach, Kouya surprised them, stating that they had customers. While everyone went to do their own activities, Kai and Haruhi decided to stay on the shore and talk with their customers. The twins went off and played volley ball, while Tamaki had alone time with all of his customers. Honey and Mori were off doing some weird workout dance with their customers.
Kai and Haruhi got changed into "Beach clothes" and since the customers were around, they weren't really able to cut loose. Instead, Haruhi wore a navy blue t-shirt with tan khaki shorts, and Kai wore a green tank top and gray hoodie with baggy black shorts. Her wrist was still a little bruised, so Haruhi made sure it was wrapped.
"Haruhi, Kai, aren't you going to swim?" asked one of the girls, obviously confused.
"Nah, we like looking at the sea from a safe distance" said Haruhi, giving them a charming smile.
The girls blushed and another said "Well if you're not going to swim, can we at least sit with you guys?".
"But why? You girls should go swim, you got cute swim suits on" said Kai, and Haruhi nodded and said charmingly,
"Why not show them off?".
The girls swooned and fell over one another. Kai laughed and said "I'll go get you girls some drinks. It's hot out here".
Kai got up and walked over to where Kyouya was sitting. She heard the twins come over and sigh.
"I can't believe he fooled us" said Hikaru, bending over to retrieve his ball.
"Who would have thought he'd bring the ladies with us" said Kaoru, shaking his head.
"We certainly didn't expect it" said Hikaru, picking up the volley ball that he and Kaoru were chasing after earlier.
"You were brought along on this all expenses paid trip for a reason. And that is to keep our clients entertained" said Kyouya, handing Kai a tray.
"We know, but with the ladies here, Haruhi and Kai can't change into their swim suits" said the twins, obviously looking bummed.
"Not to worry I have got it all under control. My little angel Haruhi won't be prancing around in a swim suit. At least not in front of you perverts anyways" said Tamaki, taking a break from his work. He wore an angelic smile, and slipped into one of his dazed fantasies.
After a few seconds of dreaming, Tamaki began to fidget with happiness. "It will happen just like that. The greatest day of my life, I don't know if I can handle it!" he said, his face red from blushing.
"What's wrong with Tamaki?" asked a girl, looking concerned.
"Oh don't worry about him" said Hikaru, sitting in a chair next to his brother.
"He just gets like that sometimes" said Kaoru, smiling at the customers.
Kai grabbed everything up, and proceeded to shake her head at Tamaki. The twins gave her evil smiles, and she blew them a kiss.
They blushed, and all the girls gushed at the scene. 'Payback at last!' she thought happily, walking away from them.
After bringing the customers drinks, they talked for a few minutes, until Kai and Haruhi decided they wanted to take their break.
They decided to go for a walk along the shore, and ended up running into Hunny and Mori. They had buckets and shovels in their hands.
"Hey you guys! You want to go hell fish shunting?" asked Honey, obviously very excited.
Kai laughed and Haruhi said "I think you mean Shell fish hunting. Besides, I don't think this is that kinda of beach, Sempai. You're not going to find many...". She trailed off as she and Kai noticed his bucket was already full of shell fish and many other delicacies.
They looked down and saw that the whole area was covered in them. "What the hell? No way!" they exclaimed, and glanced around in confusion.
Mori chuckled as he secretly told Kai how the food came to be here. Haruhi had already run over to help Honey collect everything.
Kai laughed and took a drink of her water. She noticed the girls laughing at Haruhi too. Tamaki grabbed a crab and asked Haruhi is she thought it was "Crabtivating".
Kai collapsed with laughter and Kyouya made some notes, which was most likely black mail.
Screams erupted as a centipede was found on the crab, and everyone but Haruhi, Kai, and Kyouya ran away.
Haruhi grabbed the centipede, and she and Kai walked it over to the rock, and tossed it over.
"So, I know most girls are afraid of bugs, and I certainly didn't think you guys were bug loving types" said Hikaru, leaning on Kai, while Kaoru leaned on Haruhi.
"Don't you think you could have taken it easier on the little guy?" asked Kaoru, shaking his head in dismay.
"Oh come on. It's not dead" said Haruhi, shaking her head at them.
Kai rolled her eyes at them and said "It takes a lot more to kill a bug".
The customers surrounded Kai and Haruhi, calling them brave and handsome. While all of this commotion was going on, the rest of host club made a wager.
They all were going to compete to see what Kai's and Haruhi's worst fear was.
The prize was offered by Kyouya, which were pictures of the girls throughout their life.
And so...with that the game began.
Next thing the girls knew, they were being dragged by the twins into a cave. Some customers went with, and the twins began to tell a story of the cave.
"Here it is, it's the most haunted spot in all of Okinawa. The locals don't even come out here" said Hikaru, and the customers latched on to him and Kaoru fiercely.
"They say you can only find this place at low tide. Evidently, many people have died down here from drowning. And their souls still linger, waiting to take revenge on anyone who happens to come inside" said Kaoru, looking around. Kai and Haruhi rolled their eyes, while the customers still latched on to the twins, shaking in fear.
"LOOK!" shouted Hikaru, and he pointed his flashlight at a shadow that was now laughing evilly. A hand reached out and grabbed Kai and Haruhi on their shoulders.
"What's going on? Are you trying to freak us out?" they asked the twins, annoyed by their antics.
The twins sighed and asked them "What's wrong with you two? I thought everyone was afraid of ghosts".
The customers ditched the twins, and now began to latch onto Kai and Haruhi.
"We have never seen a real one, so how can we be afraid?" they said, and led the customers out of the cave, leaving the twins to sigh in defeat.
After safely returning to girls to the beach, Kai and Haruhi were dragged away again, only this time by Honey. Honey led them to a police truck, and pushed them inside.
"Were ready when you are private police people!" he shouted, and the officers saluted him.
They shut the door, and the girls and Honey stood in the pitch black compartment.
Then, Honey began to freak out because of the dark. Haruhi and Kai did their best to comfort him, and Mori came to the rescue and opened the door. Obviously realizing that this plan was a fail, Mori grabbed a sharp harpoon and shoved it in front of their faces.
Haruhi and Kai stared and said "Mori, you're our sempai. Not our setae". Failing again, Honey and Mori walked away in defeat, and left the girls confused.
The sun was beginning to set as the twins leaned against a rock, talking to Tamaki. They were stunned that they were unable to find Haruhi's or Kai's fear. Tamaki wasn't losing hope though, since he was picking up snakes and putting them in a bucket. The twins began to freak out since they realized they were poisonous.
At the same time, Haruhi and Kai were picking up more shell fish for side dishes, when one of the customers called down to them. She and a few other girls were up on a cliff, looking at the ocean.
"Hey be careful!" yelled Kai, already dropping her bucket to retrieve the girls.
"It's dangerous!" said Haruhi, as she and Kai ran up to the top of the cliff.
When reaching the scene, they noticed a couple of drunken guys harassing the girls.
"We just want to have a little fun!" said one of the drunk guys, grabbing one of the girls. Haruhi got angry and tossed her bucket of side dishes at the creeps. "I'm going to get the guys" yelled Kai, and she ran at a dead sprint down the cliff. She screamed for the twins, not knowing why. Mori might have been a better choice, or Honey sempai, but she couldn't help herself.
Unfortunately, she lost balance and fell on some sharp rocks and scraped her hands. Strong hands pulled her up, and she was face to face with her favorite set of twins. The beach was now deserted, since Kyouya sent all of the girls to the hotel room once the yelling started.
"Don't worry the boss is on his way. Knowing him, he'll get there just in time" said Kaoru, scooping her up from the ground into his arms. She was happy to find his chest warm, and allowed herself to close her eyes just for a second.
Hikaru put his hand on her cheek and sighed.
"Why is it your always getting hurt?".
They grabbed her hands and looked at the scrapes.
"It's not my fault, I just have issues with balance" she said, and they both chuckled.
As they walked to where everyone was, Kaoru still had Kai in his arms, and he and Hikaru took turns holding her.
"So, out of curiosity, what is your biggest fear, pet?" they asked her, and she laughed at them.
"Heights. Of course that's definitely tied with bridges way high up over water. So overall, heights. Why?" she asked, suspicious of their motives.
"Just wondering. Are you okay to walk the rest of the way?" they asked her, giving her worried expressions.
"Yes I'm okay. Why, am I too heavy?" she asked them, beginning to feel self conscious now.
They laughed and touched her cheek again.
"Nah, but the others may start to wonder why were holding your pretty self for so long, even though your okay to walk".
Kai blushed as they put her down, and they laughed at her. "It's so cute when she does that" said Kaoru, and Hikaru nodded in agreement. She glared and trudged off ahead, now concerned for her best friend. She and the twins arrived just in time to see Tamaki carrying Haruhi out of the water.
She ran to Haruhi and shook her. "Are you okay? What the hell happened after I left?".
Haruhi shook her head, trying to get the water out of her ears.
"They pushed me off the cliff into the water" she said, and Kai glared.
Tamaki put a hand on Kai's shoulder, as if to say he would handle it.
"Where did they go?" he asked Kyouya, his tone cold.
"We took their ID cards and respectively asked them to leave. The girls are all back at the hotel, and I called a doctor" said Kyouya, putting a towel around Haruhi.
"I'm fine guys, I don't need a doctor" said Haruhi rubbing her head, obviously trying to relieve whatever ache was bothering her.
"What were you thinking? You know, you're not like Honey Sempai, you're not a martial arts master." Tamaki asked quietly, looking her dead in the eye. He put his hands on her shoulders, and her chin lifted in plain stubbornness.
"Why did you confront them? What made you think you stood a chance? You against two boys?" he continued, determined to make her see reason.
"But it doesn't matter that their boys and I'm a girl. I was there, I had to do something. There wasn't any time to think and"-
"That's no excuse you idiot! Don't forget, you're a girl!" he exclaimed, cutting her off, and pissing her off more.
Her eyes narrowed and she said,
"Look I'm sorry you had to come save me Sempai, but I don't understand why you're so mad at me right now. I don't think I did anything wrong!"
His hands let go of her shoulders, and his demeanor suddenly went ice cold.
"You don't think so? Fine. Whatever you say. But I am not speaking to you until you admit that you were wrong!" he yelled, and then trudged up to the house they all were staying at.
Everyone stood awkwardly, and then also made their way to the house, Haruhi glaring all the way too.
Honey and Mori were busy in the kitchen cooking up all the sea food they had picked earlier, while everyone else got ready for dinner. The twins were sitting and chatting, while Tamaki slouched in a chair and moped. Kyouya went to find Kai and escorted her to the dining room.
She was wearing a knee length dress, blue, with simple stitching. She had on white flats and a simple clip in her hair.
Tamaki, who had been moping, perked up and gushed at Kai. Kai smiled at him, thanking him for his string of compliments.
"Awww Kai-chan, you're so cute!" said Honey, gushing over Kai as he put the food on the table.
"What he said!" said the twins, grinning at her and looking her over more than necessary. They winked at her and she rolled her eyes, even though she felt herself blushing at their stares.
"Don't get too excited, I only wore a dress so Haruhi wouldn't feel self conscience" she said, and stood and waited until Mori came back with Haruhi.
Tamaki perked up when he saw her, unable to resist her cuteness. She was wearing a simple pink dress, one of which her dad secretly packed for her. Luckily, Kai had anticipated Ranka doing that, so she packed one as well.
"Ohhh Haru-chan where did you get that dress?" asked Hunny, gushing over Haruhi as well.
"From my dad, he must have repacked my bag when I wasn't looking. He is always trying to get me to wear this frilly stuff" she said, unsure why everyone was freaking out.
"That's awesome! Way to go dad!" yelled the twins, and Haruhi rolled her eyes at them.
Everyone took their seats at dinner, and Mori and Honey helped distribute the food. Kai sat next to Kyouya and the twins, while Haruhi and Tamaki ended up next to each other for some reason. It was so quiet you could literally hear the clock ticking in the other room.
"Well this is uncomfortable" muttered Hikaru, sipping on his iced tea.
"Kinda awkward" said Kaoru, and Kai nodded in agreement.
Hunny smiled nervously and said "Dig in Haru-chan. This is the food we got today!".
Haruhi grabbed a leg of a crab and broke it in two, making Tamaki wince. "This crab is incrabible. Ha-ha, get it?" she asked between bites, as everyone ate quietly, watching the scene between the two.
After her twentieth crab leg or so, Tamaki mustered up the courage and said, "Haven't you had enough? Give it a rest".
Haruhi, unfazed and still eating didn't pay him a glance and said,
"Excuse me? I thought you weren't speaking to me".
He glared at her and asked,
"You trying to be cute?"
Everyone stopped eating and watched them intently. She glared at him and he winced.
Obviously getting frustrated, Tamaki sighed.
He slammed his napkin down and said,
"Okay fine I get it. It seems you refuse to admit that you were wrong. See if I care then. I'm going to bed. Kyouya, would you show me to my room please?"
Kyouya nodded and said,
"Of course. Would you excuse me please"
He and Tamaki proceeded to leave the room, relieving some of the tension.
A few minutes later, after thinking to herself, Haruhi sighed and said,
"Maybe he's right. Maybe I do need to find a better way to protect myself".
"So that's it. He got to you huh?" asked the twins, shaking their heads at her.
It wouldn't hurt you to learn martial arts like Kai is doing" said Hikaru shrugging.
"But we're not going to force you to do it" said Kaoru, also shrugging.
"Beside, that's not the real issue here" they concluded, staring at her with somber expressions.
"To be honest, we were all a little worried about how recklessly you acted" said Hikaru, looking her dead in the eye.
"What do you mean?" said Haruhi, looking very confused. She looked to her best friend who was shaking her head.
"I've known you since we were little, and seeing you unconscious in Tamaki's arms gave me a scare Haruhi. I ran to get the guys because I knew something bad was going to happen. Had we been alone, I would have stayed with you, but this time, we weren't alone. We had friends" Kai said, voice beginning to shake. She cleared her throat and closed her eyes. Haruhi looked at her friend in alarm, and Mori patted Kai's back comfortingly.
"I didn't cause you any trouble or anything though" said Haruhi, looking around the table at everybody.
"That's not true Haru-chan. I think you should apologize. Kay? You made us all worry, especially Tama-chan. I think you should apologize to him the most" Honey scolded lightly, and Haruhi looked even more upset.
"So you were worried about me? But why?" she asked, and Honey sighed in exasperation.
"You're hopeless" stated the twins in resignation.
"You think? Guys I'm really sorry" she said, then was surrounded by hugs from the guys.
Kai waited until they were done gushing, and then lightly punched her friend on the arm. Haruhi smiled at her, and then grimaced as she touched her stomach.
"You okay?" asked Kai, putting her hand on Haruhi's shoulder to settle her.
"I don't feel so good" she said, and ran off to find a bathroom.
Kai grabbed some of the dishes and she and Hunny helped wash dishes while Mori dried them. The twins were talking with them, and everyone was laughing until they heard the loud crash of thunder. Kai looked outside, then said "Oh no. Where's Haruhi?".
Everyone shrugged, and Kai ran off to look for her, everyone following hot pursuit. Kouya found them searching around, and led them to the room Haruhi was in. Before opening to door, the twins asked Kouya if it was a good idea that she was alone with Tamaki.
"Of course, she's with our prince, Tamaki. What could possible go wrong?" asked Kouya, smiling at them. The twins sighed and knocked on the door before heading in.
"Hey boss" they said, then trailed off.
Tamaki didn't notice they were there. He was still talking to Haruhi.
"The blind fold helps you from seeing anything, and the ear plugs prevent you from hearing any sound" he said, and she smiled.
"Yeah you're right" she said, obviously happy to be rid of the thunder noise.
"You nasty pervert" said Hikaru, glaring at Tamaki.
"What kind of foreplay is that?" asked Kaoru, utter disgust on his face.
Kai glared and said "What the hell Tamaki!".
She lunged for him, only to be held back by the twins.
"Let me explain. Haruhi is afraid of thunder, so I did this to help her. Nothing like that! I would never do that to my little girl!" Tamaki said, and Kai and the twins settled down.
"I know she is afraid of thunder! Okay fine, just next time answer when we knock. Or next time, instead of hitting a ball with a bat, I'll be hitting your face, boss" Kai growled, walking out of the room and leaving Tamaki sweaty and nervous.
Haruhi was confused as she took off the blind fold and ear plugs. "Uh, what's going on? Why is Sempai rocking back in forth?" she asked them, very confused.
The others laughed, and Kyouya said,
"He'll be fine. He just had a close call with death is all"
"I'll say" said the twins, still glaring at Tamaki.
"You should get to bed Haruhi, it's been a long day" said Kyouya, grinning at her. It was as though they were sharing some private joke. Haruhi smiled at him and nodded, everyone said goodnight to her and left the room. Honey and Mori headed off to bed, while Kyouya decided to stay up in his room and write for a bit. Tamaki headed off to bed, a goofy smile on his face.
The twins headed to living room, finding Kai watching a movie.
"Aren't you going to go to bed?" they asked her, and she rolled her eyes.
"It's nine o' clock. Not for another couple hours at least. Why? You worried about me?" she asked, teasing them.
It felt good to get some retaliation for once. Only this time, instead of a witty comeback, they were unusually quiet.
They looked down at the ground, and nodded.
Kai felt her face start to burn.
She felt tongue tied, and she actually felt her eyes burn a little from the emotion.
"You want to watch the movie with me?" she asked them, signaling to the open spot next to her.
They looked at one another, then smiled at her and nodded. They both sat on either side of her, leaning into her.
The movie was Kiki's delivery service, and right before the end of the movie, Kai fell asleep. By this time, both Hikaru and Kaoru had their arms around her, and she was cuddled up between them. They smiled, and Hikaru picked her up and carried her to her room. Finding it locked, they shrugged and carried her to their room.
Laying her gently on the bed, they noticed she had goose bumps on her arms. They put the blanket on her, and then climbed into bed with her, curling up on either side of her. For the first time, they held someone else while holding themselves. Kai snuggled closer unconsciously, and they smiled. Wrapping themselves closer around her, they fell asleep to the sound of her breathing, and the rain falling outside
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hours later, Kai awoke in a room that was not her own. Her face turned a shade of beet red when she realized where she was, and whose arms were holding her. How the hell did she end up here? It feels good...but how? And damn did she mention it felt good? God she had to stop thinking that. She carefully crept up from the shirtless twins, and quietly exited the room.
Walking back to her room, she felt cold. Her door was locked, so she grabbed her necklace that she put on last night with the attached key and unlocked the door. Stepping inside, it was rather cold. The sun was beginning to rise, and she realized they would be leaving in a few hours. Too bad, because this place is pretty beautiful. Her head ached, and she wanted nothing more than to crawl back in bed with the twins, but she wouldn't. She was just a toy to them, and that's all she would be. It was safe to assume she had always had a low self-esteem, no matter how confident she pretended she was.
Lying on her bed, she realized that she really missed her mom. Too bad she was in the beginning of her season of Women's baseball in America. She always emailed her, but it was just too different for Kai. Their house was reasonably big, but living in a big house was lonelier than anyone could imagine. That's why she was staying with Haruhi. Ranka has always been like a father to her, so maybe she would talk to him when she got back. Haruhi was like her sister, and she knew she could tell her anything, but this time, she decided, she'd keep it to herself.
Getting up from the bed, she reached in the drawer and grabbed her clothes and began to pack. She knew getting upset over this would only make her think about more, but she was unable to help it.
So what would she do now while she waited for everyone to wake up? She pulled out her iPod, and clicked on the one song that made her feel a bit better.
(Your beautiful by James Blunt)
After repeating the song for a while, she turned it off and went inside her bathroom. She threw on a t shirt and a pair of shorts. Nothing special.
She put her hair in a messy bun, barely managing to do it considering how short it was.
She didn't bother with the wraps today, not willing to deal with the discomfort.
She put on a regular hoodie, and grabbed her suitcase. She carried it out to the living room, and set in on the door step. No one was awake yet, so she made toast and read more of her manga.
Everyone eventually woke up one by one, Tamaki first. He was unusually chipper, which kind of brightened her day. He talked with her a bit, and then Mori and a sleepy Hunny were next. Kouya followed, looking grumpy. He obviously wasn't a morning person. Haruhi was next, who sat down with her while eating toast. The twins were the last to wake up, and they walked into the living room, eyes seeking Kai's. She returned the look, waiting for them to say something. She certainly wasn't going to say anything, there wasn't much to say.
They smiled at her, as if to say 'This conversation isn't over. Not by a long shot'.
She sighed, and grabbed her bag as the cars arrived. She took the seat next to Haruhi, and played her iPod the whole drive back home.
"Bye Bye Okinawa, I think I left my heart with you" she thought, as she pressed play to a song...
(Stay by Lisa Loeb)