Whoo! I finally finished this! ^^ It took forever and i totally apologize for that. A lot of stuff was going on and it was getting harder to find more than three hours a week to work on this, but i did it and here it is! And to all those who have favorited, reviewed, and followed, thanks a ton! i love hearing what you all have to say and i'm glad that i'm living up to your expectations thus far. Oh! and hello to all you new people out there! Just thought i'd shout that out :)

Anyway! I'm actually a little unsure about how much i like/dislike this chapter, but let me know what you all think. I'd like to mention that yes allergy attacks can get that bad. I personally have experienced them and that is exactly what it feels like to me, anyway. And I hope Kyoya isn't too OOC at the end there. it's tough writing him in fluffy scenes because he's so... not fluffy. XD But please let me know what you think with a review!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything Ouran or Host Club-like. I only own Kohaku, and the occasional Shindo and other odd characters I throw about in here. I also do not own the songs below.

"Annie"
By SafetySuit

"She never looked in the mirror
She never liked what she would see
And even if I tried to tell her
She never listened to a word Id say
She always wanted what she never had
But never had what she needed so badly
Someone tellin' her she was fine"
And that's not right and its why I'm sayin'
Annie, don't be shy here
Annie, don't just lie there
Looks don't make the world go 'round
But it comes around"

"Curl Up And Die"
By Relient K

"I don't like the place I'm in
Headspace within the hardwood and the ceiling
Cause if I'm restless
Then why do I
I want nothing but to rest my soul
And I don't get this and I know why
You see sometimes things are just beyond control"

I was giddy. More than giddy. I was bouncing-off-the-walls excited. There was probably nothing that could bring me down today. Kyoya and I were getting along great and no one had found out about the two of us aside from Haruhi and Kyoya's sister; who I had a great dinner with over winter break. I had finally figured out what I was going to do regarding Kyoya's father. My next tournament had been canceled—though I still worked out often—and my movie script was about half way done and the outline for my next novel was written up. But the thing I was most excited about? The fact that the Host Club had gotten permission from the Equestrian Club to use the horses after school today.

"Kohaku? Are you alright?" Haruhi asked as I grinned and bounced from foot to foot in eagerness. "Please don't tell me you mixed soda and coffee again this morning."

"That was one time!" I argued, though my grin stayed in place. "And I'm just excited! Can't I be excited?" I asked, turning to her with a grin.

She, in turn, gave me a strange look. "Uh, no. Not really. It's kind of scary when you're excited. Especially since this is only the second time I've seen you really excited. And the last time was because your sodas were on sale."

"It was three for five! I couldn't pass that up!" I chirped, hardly bothered. "And even the most stoic of people can get excited over something. Just look at Mori!"

I gestured to said host who turned and bobbed his head with an amused look.

"Ah."

"See!"
Haruhi continued to give me that same look. "Yeah, but you being excited over something is like Kyoya getting excited."

I went to argue, but had nothing to really argue with, so I groaned. "I like thing, Haruhi! Is that so hard to believe?!"

"Actually… yes." She said bluntly and I quickly took up Tamaki's corner of woe, unable to stay happy with Haruhi's bluntness.

"Kohaku, get up off the floor. You're going to get dirt on your uniform." Kyoya chided, also decked out in equestrian riding gear like I was.

I poked my head up and gave him a pitiful pouting look.

"B-But Haruhi's being mean! She says I can't like things!"

Kyoya sighed, much like a parent tired of dealing with bickering children. "Then Haruhi can pay the dry cleaning bill for your uniform."

"What?!" Haruhi shouted indignantly as I got up from the ground with a grin.

"Okay! Can we go now?"

He rolled his eyes as the others chuckled, holding out an arm towards the door. "Lead the way."

"Whoo-hoo!" I cheered, rushing out of the room as the others followed at a more leisurely pace.

They took far too long to get to the stables and by the time they did, I had already picked my horse; a dune colored, mustang with black socks, mane, and muzzle. He was a bit rowdy, but I was eager to ride and had already earned his favor with a handful of sugar cubes by the time the hosts showed up.

"Wow, Ko-kun!" Honey said with a surprised look as I smiled and brushed my hand down the head of my horse. "You must be really good with horses!"

"Hm?" I hummed as the twins wandered up cautiously.

"The Equestrian Club said that horse..."

"...is hard to handle."

"Are you sure you should pick him?"

"Oh please." I said, continuing to grin as I put on the horse's bridle and reins. "He's a sweetheart! You just have to know how to get on his good side."

I chuckled as the horse nudged me in the chest, obviously looking for more sugar cubes, and I walked him out as the twins gave me dubious looks.

"He's crazy."

Kyoya seemed to agree, because I heard him mention something about keeping an ambulance nearby just in case, but I silently wondered if I would really be the one using it. Tamaki's supposed to be the one getting hurt. I thought worriedly as I walked my horse out to the field. I really don't want him to, but the girl he saves is important later on. She's supposed to take care of him and likes him because he saves her. If I interfere, then… I sighed, leading my horse back to where the others were gathered to greet the guests.

"Welcome!" We said, before we went our separate ways.

I went over by Haruhi though, wondering if she might be able to help me with this dilemma.

"Haruhi? Could you help me with something?"

She gave me a look, crossing her arms over her chest. "Other than paying your dry cleaning bill?"

I grimaced, dragging a hand though my hair. "I'll talk to Kyoya, okay? But please? This is important."

She caught onto my serious tone and looked worried. "What is it? What's wrong?"

"Say you know something is going to happen. Someone is going to get hurt and you could prevent it, but doing so might..." I winced. "...mess up something important later."

"Is someone going to get hurt, Kohaku?" She asked and I shifted uncomfortably.

"I-I can't tell you. I'm sorry, but I can't. I just… I don't know what I should do."

"Prevent it." She said, surprising me with how quickly and seriously she answered. "If someone is going to get hurt, prevent it."

"But the consequences—"

"Aren't as important as someone else's safety." She said, before I could argue my point further. "You can fix whatever is supposed to happen after that."

I frowned uneasily, tugging at the hair at the base of my neck. "It's not that easy, Haruhi. Especially this. These things have to happen."

Haruhi frowned back, almost… angry. "Promise me you'll stop it."

I looked at her in shock, having not expected her to push for this, and I shook my head slightly. "H-Haruhi, I told you. I-I can't—"

She grabbed my upper arms and looked at me seriously. "Promise me."

"I-I..."

I didn't understand. Why was Haruhi so adamant about this? She'd never acted this way with me before about what I knew, but there was something off about her. Her eyes. They showed something I didn't expect. Something that disarmed me as realization sank in. She was scared. Extremely scared. And something in my mind clicked. Something I hadn't thought of until now.

She knows. She knows that I knew about her kidnapping before. I-I didn't comfort her or anything after the fact because I figured she was fine based on how I knew she reacted in the manga. But maybe she was more scared than she let on. And at some point, she must have realized I knew it was going to happen. That I allowed it to happen. I felt the blood drain from my body. And now she's throwing it back in my face. She doesn't want someone else to have to get hurt because I let it happen. My God… w-what have I done?

"I-I..." I swallowed thickly, guilt welling up in my stomach as I bowed my head. "I promise… I-I promise, so… I'm sorry."

I turned away before she could question my apology and climbed onto the back of my horse; taking off in a gallop as I tried to calm down and figure out what I was going to do. I spotted some barrels and grit my teeth as I clung to the saddle, gripping the reins and turning my horse around sharply; rushing around one barrel and moving towards the other. Little did I know, I was being watched.

(No one's POV)

"Kyoya-sama! It's been so long since we've had a Host Club event. I'm so glad." A guest said excitedly as Kyoya fed a horse a carrot.

"Thank you so much for joining us today despite the cold weather." He greeted. "We were able to hold today's event with the cooperation of the Equestrian Club."

"Does everyone in the Host Club have experience horseback riding?" Another guest asked.

"While I am unsure about Kohaku, with one other exception, all members have all ridden at least a few times." He looked back over towards the other hosts then. "Though those two are certainly the most experienced of them all."

Mori had just jumped his horse over a barrier, but Honey was dashing full gallop on a small pony; riding bareback.

"Yah! Let's go, pony!"

Kyoya turned away from the senior's actions, searching for Kohaku in the hopes that she hadn't gotten herself into trouble yet. He didn't have to look long though, because a group of guests called out loudly in cheers.

"Look at Kohaku-kun!"

"He's so fast!"

Kyoya moved a bit closer to the group and was surprised to see Kohaku expertly navigating around a group of barrels, kicking up dirt in the process. There was something off though, and it took him a second to spot it, but when he did, suspicion and concern stirred in his stomach. While Kohaku had been excited to the point of nearly tripping over her own feet on the way to the stables earlier, her expression now was set into seriousness and guilt. And Kyoya had no idea what could have occurred between then and now to put her in such a state. She was speaking with Haruhi earlier. Perhaps words were exchanged that upset her. He headed towards Haruhi, to see if he could possibly get some answers, but she was a bit preoccupied arguing with the twins about learning to ride.

"Haruhi, let's all go to an Equestrian Club this weekend and do some horseback riding!"

"We can teach you until you're able to ride on your own with confidence."

"Uh. Hm." She hummed, thinking it over. "I think I'll pass. It's too cold out."

"Huh?! Where's active Haruhi?! Have you closed shop for the winter?" The twins questioned, shocked that she hadn't just accepted their offer.

"Nope. I'm open for business." She joked in return. "But I've decided to stop wasting energy getting fired up about pointless things, and to stop getting bogged down by mulling over things too much. I managed to break that pattern over New Years." She explained. "So from now on, I was thinking I'd start adhering to the principle of 'all experience is good' in my own way, without forcing myself to do more than I can handle."

"How's that different from the apathetic bystander you were before?" The two asked with deadpan expressions.

"Huh? It's totally different! Because I've really though it through now." Haruhi argued. "But spending time on something unimportant is just wasted effort."

Some guests called for Haruhi then and she bounded off with a smile as Kyoya, Honey, and Mori joined the twins.

"What caused this change in Haruhi?"

"The most important thing is that she's not letting the kidnapping incident get her down." Kyoya commented, though his eyes strayed towards where Kohaku had been, only to find her missing.

I wonder if her earlier attitude had to do with that. She was the last one to see Haruhi before she was taken, perhaps she blames herself? He was unsure about this, but Honey brought his attention to another host.

"...How is Tama-chan taking it?" He asked as the group glanced at the melancholy host. "It seems something is bothering him."

The gusts watching him were more that ecstatic about this new side of Tamaki though, and weren't even aware that his attitude may be due to something more.

"Hikaru, you were noting that it seems like Tamaki has finally realized his feelings for Haruhi, weren't you?" Kyoya asked, mind buzzing.

"Uh, it kind of looked that way." Hikaru said, unsure as he rubbed the back of his neck. "I thought it was the whole 'seeing Haruhi in danger and realizing how important she is to him' kind of thing."

Honey nodded in agreement. "It's true, Tama-chan hasn't been himself since the kidnapping incident."

The group all sighed as they mutually agreed that Tamaki's black box had reared it's head again, leaving them with no idea what may have been going through his head.

"Ko-kun was acting strange too." Honey commented, though said host wasn't in sight. "She was all excited at first, but then didn't look too happy."

"Was it her? I thought it was Milord who suggested today's equestrian event."

"It was Tamaki." Kyoya clarified, "For some reason, he suddenly told me, 'I want to see horses'. Kohaku just happened to be overly fond of them."

"Tamaki asked me the other day where he could find a zoo that had tigers." Mori spoke up and the others couldn't help but question the sanity of their blonde friend, who would make such a bad Japanese pun about 'trauma'.

Just then though, a scream rang out and all eyes turned to a young guest as a startled horse reared up and swung at her in it's panic.

"The horse got spooked!"

"How did it get outside the yard?!"

"Watch out!"

The horse swung down towards the woman, but two figures dashed out. One grabbed the girl protectively and the other got between them and the horse as they tried to calm it down. The horse was too frightened though and it clipped the one holding the girl, who was recognized to be Tamaki. Unfortunately, the horse slammed into the other, knocking them to the ground as the hosts all ran over in worry for Tamaki and Kohaku; the other host to have been involved in the accident.

"Milord!"

"Kohaku!"

Honey and Mori quickly calmed the startled horse as the twins rushed to Tamaki's side and Kyoya skidded in the dirt to reach the fallen Kohaku.

"Are you alright? You're not hurt?" Tamaki asked the guest he'd protected, a hand on his shoulder as his gaze shifted between looking at her and trying to get a glimpse of Kohaku.

"I-I'm fine." She said, blushing slightly just before Kyoya called out.

"Kaoru! Hikaru! Call an ambulance!"

The two nodded and began to make the call and Tamaki rushed over."

"Is Kohaku alright?"

"No." Kyoya snapped, worry and anger and guilt all mixing up inside hims as he struggled to find something to do to help the obviously pained Kohaku in front of him.

"The paramedics will be here in two minutes." Kaoru called out as Hikaru ran off to lead them to the pasture they were in.

Haruhi had caught sight of Tamaki holding his shoulder though, and stepped over towards him.

"Are you alright, Tamaki?"

He nodded, giving her a brief smile. "Yes. Just a little bruised from where the horse clipped me." He turned back towards Kohaku then, smile slipping. "Kohaku took the brunt of it."

At his words, Haruhi's eyes widened and she looked upon Kohaku's prone form; the paramedics finally rushing up with a stretcher. She had caused this, she realized. Kohaku had known someone was going to get hurt and Haruhi made her promise to prevent it, and she had, only by getting herself hurt instead. Guilt tried to drown Haruhi as the paramedics loaded Kohaku onto the stretcher and took her away. Once the guests were reassured and sent off, the rest of the hosts—sans Tamaki, who'd been sent with Kohaku to have his shoulder looked at—piled into an awaiting limo to head to the hospital; the girl from earlier insisting on going with them. The ride was tense and hardly anyone spoke the whole way there; the majority too worried and concerned to do so. When the limo arrived though, the group was quick to locate where the two hosts would be and got an update from Tamaki about his and Kohaku's condition.

"Milord!"

"Tama-chan!"

He smiled, a little forced. "I just got a bruise, but Kohaku has a broken arm and bruised ribs."

Kyoya sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose as he sank into a chair nearby; Tamaki unable to hide his small smile at his friend's concern.

"Does it hurt?" Honey asked and Tamaki nodded.

"Of course it does. I probably won't be able to raise my left arm for a while. Kohaku has it worse off. The Doctor said he'll have to use a sling for a few weeks and no strenuous activity until his ribs heal."

"He's not going to like that." The twins deadpanned, knowing how Kohaku could be.

"Good to know you two think so highly of me." A tired voice grumbled and the group turned to see an exhausted Kohaku moving towards them at a slow pace.

Her right arm was in a dark blue hanging cast from her upper arm down to her wrist, and her expression would twitch on occasion when the pain managed to be a bit too much for her to hide. It was obvious that she was on some heavy pain killers however, because her eyes were half-lidded, body slumped, and the tiredness was evident in her features. This, of course, didn't stop the others from expressing their relief at her appearance.

"Ko-kun!" Honey shouted, rushing towards her and she stiffened in preparation for the pain that would come from his attack hug, but he skid to a stop in front of her and just bounced in place with a worried look in his eyes. "Are you okay? Does it hurt a lot?"

Kohaku nodded slightly. "My ribs hurt a little, but they've got me on some pain killers so it's tolerable." She winced as she shuffled in place. "Mostly."

"Excuse me." A soft voice said and all eyes went to the young guest from earlier, as she bowed. "I truly apologize for this. You've both been horribly injured because of me."

"It wasn't your fault." Kyoya said. "We were the ones who hadn't noticed the gate to the arena was open."

Kohaku yawned, drowsy from her pain killers, but Tamaki looked at the guest in confusion.

"Huh? Have I seen you somewhere before?"

"You…" Kyoya sighed, explaining. "Since you've been out of it all day, you may not have realized that Miss Kanoya here transferred into our class today."

"Yes." Tamaki muttered, realizing his rudeness.

Kanoya didn't seem to mind though. "I just moved here from Kobe. My name is Megumi Kanoya. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"The pleasure's all mine, miss." Tamaki smiled, but Kohaku walked right past the two; a blank, tired expression on her face.

"Yes, yes. Nice to meet you and all, but I'm exhausted. Bye.~"

She went straight for the door and Haruhi quickly bolted after her.

"Kohaku! Wait!"

Kyoya though, sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "It is probably best I go after him. He shouldn't be walking in his condition." Kyoya then bobbed his head to Kanoya. "apologies for his attitude. I will be sure to reprimand him later."

And with that, he hurried out after Kohaku, leaving Kanoya rather confused.

(Kohaku's POV)

I hated this. Every second of it. Between Kyoya coming in to remind me of my pain medication and Haruhi serving my every need, I was ready to just go and pass out on the couch. Anything to get me away from them. I mean, seriously! Tiptoeing around me is one thing, but if anyone comes over and asks if I'm okay or if I need anything, I swear to God, I'm going to scream. Thankfully, it was lunch time at this point, so I'd have a chance to relax a bit. Or so I thought.

"Tamaki-sama! Kohaku-sama! Over here!" Kanoya called out and I groaned quietly. "I saved seats."

And then there's her. I mentally complained. She's not even in my class and she's sucking up to me. Tamaki's the one who saved her. I went over and sat with her, Tamaki and Kyoya, knowing that Kyoya would go after me for being rude again if I didn't.

"Miss Kanoya! Oh, you didn't need to go to the trouble of saving seats for us."

"It was no trouble. I wanted to be helpful to make up for your injuries." She passed Tamaki and I some large bentos. "I'm not sure if it will suit your tastes, but..."

I sighed quietly, but tucked the bento Haruhi made me away for now, to not be rude. I would eat it afterward, of course. I can't pass up a good meal, but right now I really just wanted some peace and quiet; and if eating her bento and playing nice works, then that's what I'll do.

"D-Did you make this?" Tamaki asked, surprised at the size of the bento, if I had to guess.

"Yes. I love to cook, so..."

"Your family owns several traditional Japanese restaurants in Kansai, don't they?" Kyoya asked, giving me a disapproving look as I put some crayfish from the bento onto his lunch tray.

"Yes." Kanoya answered him. "Since I was young, I've loved helping my father cook in the kitchens of his restaurants."

She caught me sneaking some sushi onto Kyoya's tray then, my tongue between my teeth as I struggled to maneuver my chopsticks with my left hand.

"Do you… not like it, Kohaku-sama?"

I flinched, glancing up slowly as I dropped the sushi on Kyoya's plate.

"I-I, uh… don't like sushi or… seafood… or… vegetables… or—"

Kyoya cleared his throat, cutting me off as heat trailed up the back of my neck to the tips of my ears in embarrassment.

"R-Right. Sorry."

I bowed my head and began poking at the food once more, but Kanoya chuckled.

"Hehe, that's alright. I'll make sure to leave those out next time."

I let out a soft, barely audible groan, but earned Kyoya's wrath in the process; him bringing his heel down on my foot as he smiled politely at Kanoya.

"You said you were attending Aoizuka Academy in Kobe… You're from the most prestigious family in that area." He commented, the emphasis on 'most prestigious' being a warning for me to behave. "why the sudden transfer to Ouran in the middle of your second year?"

Oh right. Because digging up her personal life is less rude than not wanting another bento. I mentally complained, rolling my eyes until I was forced to frown; having lost my grip on an egg roll and dropping it back into the box in front of me. Why couldn't the horse have kicked my left arm? Noooo, had to do in my dominant hand.

"Ko-kun! I brought the notes Takashi and I took for you!"

I turned around and winced as my ribs ached in protest at the movement, somehow managing to put a smile on my face for Honey and Mori as they held up the notebooks.

"Thanks guys. Could you put them in my bag for me?"

"Ah." Mori hummed, doing just that up until he and Honey went to talk with the twins about Kanoya.

I couldn't quite hear them from where I was, so I went back to eating. Kanoya had other ideas though, and made me pause mid-bit when she spoke to me.

"Kohaku-sama, you're so quiet and calm. You're mature for your years."

She's onto us! Abort! Abort! Some voice shouted in the back of my mind as I lowered my food calmly and tried to say something.

"Um… Thank—"

I was cut off as someone smacked my right shoulder, sending rivets of pain through my body. The twins were the culprits, having apparently done the same to Tamaki when Kanoya made a similar comment. It took me a moment to recover from the hit; the twins gossiping about Tamaki and I in the process.

"Miss Kanoya, we're sorry to tell you they're just a little out of it these days. Normally, Tamaki is a rowdy, raucous undignified prat! And Kohaku a stubborn, aggressive, shy, over-working commoner, you see!"

"Oh my!" Kanoya said, bringing a hand to her mouth in surprise.

The twins, of course, continued while Tamaki and I were still indisposed.

"Afraid so. Tamaki's a narcissist, a rapscallion, a pervert, and a crybaby! He still sleeps with his teddy bear too!"

"Oh my."

"And Kohaku's a savage, a maniac, a fighter, and a lunatic! He fights people three times his size too!"

"Oh my."

"Tamaki likes packed lunches with the food shaped into hearts and his hobby is researching Japanese traditions only to come up with completely erroneous conclusions. And Kohaku—"

I cut them off, snapping my chopsticks in half before I pushed my seat out and stood. "I'm going to the restroom."

The group went quiet as I walked out and I went straight to the nearest restroom to splash some water on my face. Letting out a long sigh, I dried myself off and looked in the mirror at my tired, worn-out expression. I need a break. I sighed again before leaving the restroom, only to nearly bump into Kyoya.

"Are you alright?"

"Hm?" I blinked tiredly, before his words registered in my mind. "Yeah, no. I'm fine."

I went to move past him, but he grabbed me by the elbow and stopped me.

"Kohaku, I'm not stupid."

I closed my eyes and let out a sigh. "Fine, alright? I've got a headache and I'm exhausted. My arm is killing me and I'm tired of all the tiptoeing everyone's doing." I rubbed my face with my hand. "Honestly? I just want to punch the twins in the face, go home, watch some animal documentary or something, and pass out on the couch."

He raised a brow. "An… animal documentary?"

I lifted my eyes and gave him a serious look. "Yeah. The kind where you get to watch lions stalk wildebeests before they pounce and eat them for lunch."

With a sigh of his own, he pushed up his glasses. "You're anxious and annoyed. I'll see what I can do, but you need to stay for the rest of your class time. I'll escort you home right after."

I shook my head with a groan. "No, it's fine. I'm being selfish. We're supposed to come up with something to help Tamaki and Kanoya-san, right? I'll be fine until then."

He eyed me suspiciously, but nodded. "Very well, but do not push yourself too far. I need to take you back to the hospital later."

I waved my hand nonchalantly. "Yeah, yeah. I'll be fine. Let's just head back. I need some pain killers."

He let out another sigh, but walked back with me. I couldn't day I was entirely pleased with staying, but I knew that some important plot bits were supposed to happen during the usual hosting, and leaving just because I was tired and annoyed wasn't a really good reason. That, and something was going on with Haruhi. She had been acting strangely towards me since I'd come back from the hospital, and I wasn't sure if she still blamed herself for what happened or if it was something else. Suppose I'll find out sooner or later. But for now… I frowned. For now, I need to keep from strangling the twins.

(No one's POV)

Kyoya headed into the third music room with Kohaku, who quickly went to a couch and laid down while massaging her temples with her free hand. She was obviously tense after what happened with her arm and Kyoya knew it was mostly because she was incapable of doing her usual activities. However, there was a part of him that knew there was something else bothering her, though whatever it was, he'd have to wait to find out.

"Where are Tamaki and Haruhi?" He asked the twins and Honey, who were all pouting.

"Haruhi said she was dropping by the library. No idea about milord." The twins said in annoyance.

Kyoya frowned. "Why are you all sulking? If it's regarding the rumors surrounding Tamaki, Kohaku and Miss Kanoya, there's nothing to be done. If Miss Kanoya is trying to ease her guilt over getting Tamaki and Kohaku injured, then there's no way they can refuse her care." He gave Kohaku a glance. "Though sneaking away seems to be an option."

Kohaku groaned and rolled onto her uninjured side, back facing him.

"We know that!" The twins complained.

"Of course we know that!"

"But why did this have to happen right when milord has finally started becoming aware of his inner trauma? Even if it was only materialized in the form of lame puns..." They argued, remembering Tamaki's zoo trip to see tigers and his playing with the horses.

"But Tama-chan's feelings for Haru-chan won't change just because he met his dream Haruhi, right?" Honey asked in worry.

"If he really does like Haruhi, then he wouldn't change his feelings." Kohaku spoke up, still not facing them and making Kyoya sigh.

"In any case, I have more troubling news. It seems the reason for Miss Kanoya's move here was due to a conflict between her parents. Rather, it was due to a conflict between her parents' families." He explained. "Her father is currently planning to open a new business and her mother's relatives are against it. 'If you intend to go forward with you plans, we will insist upon a divorce'." He quoted from what he'd found earlier. "'We will no longer allow you to see your daughter Megumi-san either'. It seems all contact between Miss Kanoya and her father has been cut off. The circumstances mirror a certain someone, doesn't it?"

Unbeknownst to them, Tamaki was standing just outside the doors listening in, though his phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out to see who messaged him.

You shouldn't be eavesdropping.

-Kohaku

Tamaki looked at the message in surprise and then through the cracked open door, spotting Kohaku's hand waving at him from the couch.

"Does milord know all this?" Kaoru asked, drawing Tamaki's attention back to them for a bit.

"I'm not sure. He may have heard, or perhaps Miss Kanoya will tell him herself in the near future. Either way..."

Tamaki turned away to leave, not wanting to hear anything more.

"...In terms of status, Megumi Kanoya is without a doubt an ideal match for Tamaki. And it must not be overlooked that she may be someone who can really understand and relate to him."

Kohaku sighed loudly then and sat up with an annoyed look. "You guys are stupid. Just because she's his 'dream girl' doesn't mean he'll fall heads-over-heels in love with her. Your ideals aren't always ideal, you know?" She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Just give them a break. Believe it or not, but Tamaki's not as stupid as you think."

"I still think that we should check in on him." Hikaru grumbled.

"Kohaku shrugged, gingerly lying back down on the couch. "It's up to you. I'm just saying, he's not an idiot. Give him a chance to fix things himself before you go ruining their lunch."

They exchanged looks among themselves, but a majority of the group left to go spy on Tamaki,, leaving Kohaku and Kyoya in the club room.

"Not an idiot, huh?" Kyoya hummed, sitting at a table nearby and jotting some notes down in his notebook. "Do you know something I don't?"

"Hm." Kohaku hummed, closing her eyes. "Just that you shouldn't underestimate him. Like I said, he's… smarter than you think."

Kyoya hummed as well, going to question Kohaku further, but he noticed that she'd fallen asleep and he pushed the questions aside as he went to the back room to grab a blanket to cover her with; her words bouncing around his head.

Smarter than I think, hm…?

Haruhi sighed, sad eyes looking down at the books she was carrying as she walked away from where she'd bumped into Tamaki and Kanoya. This is all my fault. Why did I go and say that to Tamaki? Not only that, but… She became even more downcast. I got Kohaku hurt. How could I do that to her? She was trying to tell me, but I just kept pushing and now she… she hates me, doesn't she… A dark cloud began to form over her head as she remembered Kohaku eating Kanoya's bento over the one she made her. How could I be so stupid?

"Haruhi! There you are!" Hikaru called out, snapping her out of her downward spiraling thoughts as he grabbed her and began tugging her along after him. "We've been looking all over for you."

"H-Huh? What? W-Where are we going?" Haruhi stuttered out as she was pulled along.

"To spy on Tamaki, of course. Now, sh! He'll hear."

Hikaru pulled her down beside him as they hid behind a bush not far from where Tamaki and Kanoya were having lunch, joining Kaoru, Honey, and Mori.

"Target sighted!" He whispered, using binoculars to get a better look. "Despite the cold, the two are cozily enjoying lunch together in the courtyard again today."

Kaoru spoke up this time, also with binoculars. "I can see a humongous picnic basket! Is today's packed lunch supposed to be in super-sized western style?! And are they really going to eat all that?! Perhaps Miss Kanoya has a considerable appetite!"

"I wonder how early she wakes up in the morning to make those lunches." Honey questioned, making even more guilt rise up in Haruhi.

"Um… Let's stop spying on them guys." She suggested with a sigh of defeat. "I've got a pile of books I could be reading."

"Stupid Haruhi! Show some solidarity!" Hikaru complained.

"No thanks. Why do I have to sit here while you guys amuse yourselves spying?"

"Amuse ourselves?" Hikaru growled out, before snapping. "We're spying on them because we're obviously not amused! You've got some nerve pretending the weather is what's bothering you most about this situation! Seeing those two together is bothering you as much as it is us!"

"It doesn't bother me that much." Haruhi mumbled.

Kaoru and Honey were ignoring the two of them, being more focused on what was going on with Tamaki and Kanoya's lunch date.

"Miss Kanoya is lifting a piece of food right to milord's lips!"

"This must be the 'say, ah!' play!" Honey chirped and Hikaru and Haruhi quickly turned to watch, apparently more bothered than they had said.

"But milord has gracefully declined!" Kaoru narrated dramatically. "Will the shock of this refusal reduce Miss Kanoya to tears?"

Of course, Kanoya just chuckled elegantly and the group sweat-dropped as Haruhi watched with a blank expression.

"Nope. No tears."

Hikaru sighed. "Know what I heard? That girl apparently confessed her love to milord yesterday."

"So soon?" Kaoru questioned. "I guess love at first sight is plausible, but it's only been a week since she transferred here. No matter how grateful she is to milord for saving her, I find it odd that she's been clinging to him so much that she hasn't bothered to make any other friends. She didn't confess to Kohaku, did she?"

Hikaru shook his head and Haruhi furrowed her brows.

"How did Tamaki… respond…?"

Before anyone was able to answer her, they were caught.

"Haruhi? What are you all doing down there?" Tamaki asked, giving the group behind the bush an odd look as he approached. "If you wanted some of Miss Kanoya's packed lunch, all you had to do was ask."

"Please, help yourselves." Kanoya called out with a smile. "There's plenty here."

The group mentally face-palmed at the reappearance of Tamaki unpredictable 'black box' but they did join the two to share the large lunch Kanoya had made. Kyoya though, came by to snatch Tamaki away.

"Tamaki. Can you come to the clubroom after you're done eating? Since you didn't show up yesterday, I'll fill you in on what you missed."

"Sorry about that!" Tamaki said, quickly getting up and heading over. "I'll come right away!" He made sure to thank Kanoya first though. "Thank you so much for the lunch, Miss Kanoya. It was delicious today too."

"But you haven't eaten very much." Kanoya said in worry. "Um, in that case I'll come with you."

"No, no. Please take your time and enjoy your lunch with everyone." He countered, waving as he hurried off. "Sorry. I'll see you later."

Unbeknownst to him, he ended up leaving behind a rather dejected Kanoya, but he was more distracted by the missing host.

"Kyoya? Where's Kohaku? I haven't seen her since earlier, and I thought she'd be with you."

Kyoya ignored what Tamaki was implying. "She's asleep in the clubroom. I believed it would be best to let her sleep, than drag her back here. She's been rather..." Kyoya frowned slightly. "...disagreeable, as of late."

Tamaki couldn't help but chuckle at that. "She has been rather grumpy, hasn't she?"

"Grumpy doesn't begin to cover it." Kyoya grumbled. "Honey-senpai has already told me she glares at her notebook in class as she attempts to take note with her left hand. She does the same with her chopsticks as well."

"Well, you're lucky she's keeping her temper." Tamaki chuckled as they neared the third music room. "I would have thought she'd of snapped at this point. You know how she is about doing things on her own."

Kyoya scoffed. "She's too stubborn to accept help, is what it is. It's a wonder she hasn't broken her arm sooner with her recklessness."

The two of them headed in and Kyoya sighed upon seeing the blanket he'd put over Kohaku on the ground beside the couch she was sleeping on. He went over and picked it up, draping it over her once more, before grabbing what he needed to give Tamaki; only to find him smiling smugly.

"What?" Kyoya snapped.

"Nothing." Tamaki hummed, taking the papers from the suspicious host. "I just thought that it's nice Kohaku has someone like you to look out for her."

Easily understanding what Tamaki was trying to insinuate, Kyoya diverted the topic.

"She looked like an abandoned puppy, didn't she?"

Tamaki looked up from the papers, confused. "Huh?"

"Miss Kanoya." Kyoya clarified. "I heard she confessed to you. Are you two going out then?"

"I politely refused her right then and there." Tamaki said, sounding exasperated. "Despite that, again today she… I think she's latched on to me to try to escape from something that's hurting her. But there's nothing I can do for her right now. Because in watching her, I've come to realize I've… I've been doing the exact same thing."

"He's smarter than you think."

Kohaku's words rang out in Kyoya's head, making him wonder just how close her and Tamaki had gotten. They both have similar problems, so perhaps they confide in one another more than I previously thought. Kohaku and Tamaki are… quite similar, now that I think about it.

"What Hikaru said..." Tamaki went on forlornly. "I've been thinking about it, and I get the feeling that he was referring to that. You see, I… I was so happy to make friends and I was so worried we'd grow apart someday that I kept pushing my ideals of a family on everyone. Kohaku probably thought this way too." He chuckled nervously. "And here I was imagining this trauma of mine would be something cooler. Now that I've realized it, it's actually kind of uncool, isn't it?"

This guy… when did he figure all this out? Kyoya questioned, eyeing Kohaku briefly as Tamaki continued.

"So even though Miss Kanoya is doing the same thing by clinging to me to hide from her problems, I can't do anything for her. Or maybe, I should say, I don't know what to do for her." Tamaki then put a smile on his face, though it was a bit forced. "Ah, but that's alright. I'll, uh, figure something out sooner or later, I'm sure."

They drifted into silence for a while, it only lifting when Kanoya dropped by to be with Tamaki; who soon left to escort her home. Once they were gone, however, Kyoya was startled when Kohaku spoke up.

"What an idiot." She grumbled, pulling a hand through her—already messy—bedhead. "Their situations are practically identical, so it's no wonder he can't figure out what to do. He has to understand his own problem first."

"How long have you been listening in?" Kyoya asked, heading towards her as she tugged the blanket closer around her shoulders.

"Mm, since Tamaki got depressed about his supposed trauma."

Kyoya sweat-dropped. "So… since the beginning."

She shrugged. "Suppose."

Kyoya let out a sigh, but couldn't help watching Kohaku for a moment. She was obviously still tired, judging by the way she ha;halfheartedly looked around the room in a daze. He couldn't help but think she looked rather cute with cowlicks making portions of her hair stick up and the blanket around her shoulders making her look smaller and less… imposing than she usually was. It was then that he realized she was talking.

"...don't know why he thinks his trauma is 'uncool'. There's nothing wrong with not wanting to be left alone and clinging to the people you have. Moron just needs to trust us to stick with him and ask for help."

"Hm, sounds like someone else I know." Kyoya hummed, smirking as he put his hands on the couch behind her, leaning in towards her face as red began to tint her cheeks in embarrassment. "You seem to have a similar problem with asking for help."

"B-But that's because..." She faltered, trying to come up with an excuse, to no avail. "I-It's different! I-I ask for help..." She turned away slightly. "...sometimes."

Kyoya raised a brow. "Name one time."

"There was that one time! When… um..." She grew more embarrassed. "...Help?"

She cracked a nervous smile and Kyoya couldn't help the chuckle that escaped his lips before he kissed her and pulled away slightly; noses still touching.

"You..." He kissed her again, placing a hand on the side of her face. "...are the most stubborn person I've ever met."

"As are you." She quipped back with a smile, cheeks still a light pink. "Which is why I booked an appointment to get a second tattoo without telling you first." She said quickly, grabbing her bag and ducking out from under his arms as she bolted for the door. "Bye!~"

It suddenly clicked in Kyoya's head what she had just admitted to doing and he quickly stood up just as she was halfway out the door.

"You did what?!"

"Love you!" She called back, making her getaway before Kyoya could expel his wrath, though his shout echoed down the hall.

"KOHAKU!"

(Kohaku's POV)

I pouted childishly beside Kyoya as I checked over crossword puzzles for this plan Haruhi had some up with. Apparently, Kyoya called her to ask for help since I was so elegantly avoiding his calls after I'd dropped the new about the appointment for a second tattoo. Yeah, I'll admit it. I was a bit jealous he asked Haruhi, but more importantly, I was upset she hadn't been speaking to me lately. I mean, even Ranka has no clue and has been talking with me through dinner to keep us from falling into an awkward silence. It's just weird. I wonder what's going on with her.

"Stop daydreaming and focus, Kohaku." Kyoya threatened. "This is your punishment for not telling me about that appointment you made. And I had better not see any mistakes."

"Yes, Kyoya-sama." I grumbled, before muttering quietly under my breath. "You think you're so scary when you push up your glasses, don't you."

"What was that?" he asked and I flinched, turning to him with an innocent smile.

"Nothing, Kyoya-sama.~"

He obviously wasn't convinced, but had to drop the subject when his phone went off.

"There are two teams currently at my station, Honey-senpai. Or perhaps I should say there are two teams grappling with the 'ultimate stumbling block' crossword puzzle I gave them." He said darkly as I rolled my eyes and watched the two teams struggle. "In the case of Miss Kanoya, yes. We'll just have to take a gamble on Tamaki."

I hummed, gaining Kyoya's attention. "No, it'll work. Just need Haruhi to give him a little push near the end. Can't leave things as they are since Honey, Takashi, and I are finally graduating."

"Are you?" Kyoya questioned. "I thought with your delinquency, you'd be kept back another year."

I scoffed. "Oh, ha-ha. Very funny."

He smirked a bit before we both spotted Haruhi rushing our way.

"Haruhi? Why aren't you at your station?"

"Kasanoda is looking after the station." She huffed out, out of breath. "We have a problem. Cooking room 1 where we planned to have the finish line, is unusable. I need to go tell the other tables, so K-Kohaku? Could you help look after my station?"

"Sure." I said, shrugging, only to wince when my arm ached.

"Thanks!" She called out, before dashing off and I gave Kyoya a look.

"When should I tell her she could just use the PA system?"

He smirked. "Give her some time to figure it out."

I chuckled. "Oh, we're so mean."

(No one's POV)

"Welcome! It's the 'Whack a Bunny When It Pops Up' challenge!" Honey cheered at his station. "It's based on a commoner's game called 'Wac-A-Mole'… I thought it'd be cuter to use bunnies instead!"

The guests awed at the adorable display, but Tamaki had a bad feeling about this and was soon proven right when a guest hit one of the bunnies with a rubber mallet.

"The poor bunnies!" Honey wailed and the guest panicked.

"Aw! I'm so sorry, Honey-senpai! I won't hit them anymore!"

Honey turned to Tamaki though, with the most pitiful eyes. "Tama-chan, you won't hit the bunnies, will you?"

"I'm sorry, Honey." Tamaki said apologetically as he picked up the rubber mallet. "Victory depends on this so you must brave through it!"

He hit the bunnies mercilessly as Honey cried behind him until Tamaki was done.

"I hate you, Tama-chan." Honey pouted and Tamaki picked out two more curry ingredients before he spotted Kanoya looking upset.

"Miss Kanoya? What is it?"

"Nothing..." She soon said and Tamaki turned away.

"Really? Okay then."

Honey caught sight of Tamaki's small smile though. "Tama-chan?"

"Honey, I've figured out the objective of all this. Who was the mastermind behind it?"

"Kyoya started the whole thing, but Haru-chan came up with this idea." He answered and Tamaki smiled softly before he and Kanoya headed for the next station.

"Miss Kanoya." Tamaki spoke up. "Right now, there's a certain girl who has awoken feelings in me that I don't know what to do about. There are those who say you resemble her, but I've never thought so. You two are very different and I've been mistaken about a lot of things."

"Are you in love with her? That girl..." Kanoya asked and Tamaki smiled fondly.

"Yes. I probably have been for a long time." He said, remembering the kidnapping incident with Haruhi and his feelings at the time. "After you transferred here, Miss Kanoya, I became even more certain. I saw a lot of similarities between us. I do love my parents. But something inside me had always been bothered by the fact that because my father chose my mother, various people ended up hurt. As a result, I've always feared that if I were to hold someone as special, someone else precious to me would suffer. That's why I've avoided facing my true feelings. Kohaku too, I think."

Tamaki couldn't help but think about the white-haired host who struggled so much and still stuck by his side despite it all. The two of them were similar in many ways and he was overjoyed that she'd managed to push past it all to get with Kyoya—something he knew had happened despite their trying to hide it from him. And he wondered if he too could achieve something like that.

"Hikaru tried to encourage me, but… I guess I lacked the courage to believe. I was a coward who hid away in his shell, seeking only to protect himself. And I questioned myself. How could a person like that ever hope to contend with as earnest and unwavering a girl as she?"

"Tamaki-kun..."

Tamaki jumped when his phone went off and pulled it out to see the text he'd received.

You idiot.

-Kohaku

Tamaki let out an indignant short at Kohaku's timely text, and Kanoya blinked in confusion, before Mori stepped forward; now that they'd reached the next station.

"Have you finished your talk? Then take up sword, Tamaki." he said, holding out a bamboo sword to Tamaki. "If you want to move forward, you will have to defeat me first."

"Mori..." Tamaki then remembered where they were and panicked. "Ah… We're still in the middle of the orienteering tournament, aren't we… Wait—I have to beat you in kendo?! That's impossible! And not just for me. You'll annihilate everyone..."

"Hey, Suoh-san! We won our match!" A couple of classmates said as a girl nearby giggled.

"We've nearly got it!"

Tamaki couldn't believe it, until he caught sight of the actual test; Beary's One Shot Crisis-Kendo Version.

"B-But I'm glad. If it's a game like this, at least I've got a chance." Tamaki mused, taking the kendo sword from Mori, who gave him a serious look.

"Tamaki, I'll tell you now that you will lose. This game reflects the strength of a person's heart. A coward like you could never win."

An announcement came over the PA system then, making him pause.

"Attention tournament competitors! The finish line has been moved from Cooking room 1 to Cooking room 3. And Haruhi, you're an idiot.~ Think a little before you go running around the school, would ya?"

A chuckle threatened to escape Tamaki at Kohaku's words, but he soon sobered up enough to attempt Mori's challenge. Eight rounds later and he panted heavily as he lost once more.

"How?… I've already lost eight times in a row. It couldn't really be the influence of my heart, could it?"

Mori turned to him. "Someone once told Mitsukuni, 'being true to yourself is also what it means to be strong'. In the moment Mitsukuni accepted those words—the words I've never been able to say—i decided to put my faith in that person as well. If you don't put your faith in us, that's your choice. But once I decide to trust someone, I don't make a habit of doubting them. That too, is a form of strength."

"Mori..."

"That is why I will never lose this challenge!" Mori stabbed into the barrel and immediately went into a corner of woe when he lost. "You can choose two ingredients for your curry..."

"M-Mori… um… In that case, we'll take the sea cucumber and—"

"Onion and garam masala." Kanoya interrupted, surprising Tamaki.

"Huh?"

"If it's alright with you, please choose the onion and garam masala..."

Tamaki did and the two of them soon headed to Kyoya's station.

"Took you long enough. Has your ingredients-gathering gone well?"

Tamaki looked around in confusion. "Where's Kohaku? I thought he'd be here."

Kyoya pushed up his glasses in a vain attempt to hide his annoyance. "He was, but needed to cover Haruhi's station and most likely won't return here." He then spotted the mess of ingredients the duo before him had collected. "my, such a haphazard mix. I'm sure fruit curries and pike curries exist, but I've never heard of them being incorporated together. This will probably make things hard for you, Miss Kanoya. You could give up now and avoid the futile task."

"No… you see, those aren't ingredients I chose. That is..." She brought a hand to her mouth in worry. "...as long as I choose carefully among the ingredients, I should be able to use them. Even starting now, if I can just line up the right spices..."

"You think so?" Kyoya said heartily. "Then by all means, have at my specially crafted crossword puzzle. Incidentally, the football club members—the first to arrive at this station—are still here, as you can see."

"Just how hard did you make the questions..." Tamaki muttered, Kanoya looking the paper over.

"It seems to be going well, hm?" Kyoya mused.

"Huh?"

"So about Miss Kanoya."

Tamaki nodded. "Yeah. Though I didn't realize it myself until about halfway through. This plan was meant to make her express her own opinions, wasn't it?"

"Precisely. Presuming you would naturally choose ridiculous ingredients, we were betting her acquiescence would eventually wear off. Many thanks for acting predictable as always, by the way." Kyoya gave him a small smirk. "Though Miss Kanoya's father's specialty is Japanese cuisine. He is actually also quite skilled at cooking curries. It's well known to his regular customers. When I heard about it, I thought this plan might work. And I should add that Haruhi believed you would surely figure out our plan midway through and help us succeed."

Tamaki stared at him in surprise before Kanoya came over to question him about the crossword. Once they got the hang of that though, it wasn't long before Miss Kanoya began to speak for herself and they were off to the next—and final—station. Haruhi's station.

(Kohaku's POV)

I yawned tiredly as my pain meds kicked in and I leaned back in my chair to close my eyes for a second.

"Ko-kun, you're awfully quiet." Honey chirped over one of the open cell phones on the table before me.

"Mm, just tired. Pain meds kicking in and Mr. Blonde-Loud-And-Crazy isn't here yet, I'm enjoying the silence while I have the—"

I was cut off by Haruhi welcoming said crazy blonde and Miss Kanoya.

"Welcome to the final checkpoint."

"—chance." I let out a long sigh. "And here comes the crazy."

"This is the mouth of truth." Haruhi continued, placing a hand on the large stone face behind her. "If you answer falsely to any of the four questions, I will put to you, your hand will be swallowed up, and you will be unable to reach the finish line. Miss Kanoya, please step forward for your team."

"Alright."

She stepped up and put her hand in the stone face's mouth, and Haruhi started to ask the fated questions.

"Is your name Megumi Kanoya?"

"Yes."

"Is your hobby cooking?"

"Yes."

"Before transferring to Ouran, did you attend Aoizuka Academy?"

"Yes."

"Have you felt no discontent or regret since parting with your father and living so far away from him?"

"Haruhi!" Tamaki exclaimed in shock and I—who'd gotten up—put a hand on his shoulder to stop him as Kanoya answered uncertainly.

"N-No..."

The mouth of the stone face closed around her hand and she immediately went into a panic.

"Eek! M-my hand! Y hand is trapped inside! Something warm and fleshy is gripping my arm!"

"Haruhi! Kohaku! Surely that's enough! Stop this!"

"I won't." Haruhi said, and Tamaki pulled away from me in his frustration.

"Haruhi!"

"I won't!" She shouted back. "Tamaki, aren't you a liar too?! You promised me you'd open up to me, but you're worrying over something all your own again." She said, lowering her voice as she wrung her hands together. "You were probably thinking you'd resolve it without having to bother anyone about it, weren't you? Were you afraid if you showed us your true thoughts, we'd all pull away? If that's the case, it's far too late. We all know your good and bad points already. You're egotistical, a crybaby, overly spontaneous, and you like to grab people by the hands and twirl them around."

I snorted. "Overly so."

Haruhi ignored me and went on. "We know you. Can't you understand? Despite it all… Despite it all, we're here because we want to be with you!"

"Seriously, Tamaki." I said, giving him a look. "It's nice and all that you go around helping others all the time, but you need to get some help too."

Kanoya called out then, reminding us that this whole pep-talk thing was for her as well.

"Please let me go! Tamaki, help!" She clenched her eyes shut then as tears started to form. "Father, help me! I want to come home to Kobe!" She shouted, sniffing. "But there's no way I could tell them that. Father's new business is something he's dreamed of doing for so long. But mother has to protect her family's traditions as well. I know both of them are hurting over this. That's why I want to support fathers dream of becoming a comedian however I can!"

I snorted, ducking behind Tamaki and Haruhi as I stifled my laughter, and they stared at Kanoya in confusion.

"Huh?"

"Huh?"

"A comedian?"

Kanoya nodded. "Um, well, yes. He says he wants to become an entertainer chef. He wants to put his knife-carving skills to good use and create a new type of comic act..."

Tamaki began to quiver then, before bursting into laughter.

"Ahaha! An entertainer chef! I want to see that! I really want to see that!" He blurted out as he hung off my uninjured shoulder; myself unable to hold back my laughter as well.

"Ahaha! I can't b-believe that's the new business! O-Oh my God!"

"Hey! Tamaki! Kohaku! You're being rude!" Haruhi scolded, though she had a little red in her cheeks as well.

"Ahaha! An entertainer chef?!" The twins belted out through their phone. "What the heck is that?!"

"I wonder if he can carve cakes." Honey also chirped from his phone.

"I see." Kyoya hummed from his. "I can certainly sympathize with Miss Kanoya."

"I think it's manly..." Mori spoke up from his phone, sending me into more laughter as Tamaki confronted the cellular devices and Haruhi spoke with Kanoya.

By the time I'd calmed down though—my side aching terribly—Tamaki and Kanoya had headed for the finish line, leaving me with Haruhi; who was rolling her eyes as I tried to catch my breath.

"Whoo… That was, heh, that was funny..."

"It wasn't that funny."

I gave her a look. "Says you. You've been all cranky for a while now. Maybe you should stick your hand in the stone mouth."

"W-What? I-I don't know what you're talking about." She said, though I was hardly convinced.

"Yeah, right." I grumbled, giving her a stern look. "Haruhi, you haven't spoke to me in days, so don't give me that whole 'clueless' bit. What's going on?"

"Nothing!"

I sighed, grabbing her wrist and stuffing her hand into the mouth of the stone face. "You want to say that again?"

"Nothing's wrong!" She argued, before the mouth closed and she gaped at me in disbelief. "Kohaku! Let me out!"

I shook my head, putting my foot down. "Nope. Not until you tell me what's going on.

"Nothing's going on, Kohaku!"

"Right. Yeah, no, course not. You just avoided me for no reason, right?" I said sarcastically.

"Kohaku!"

"No, that's fine. I get it. I screwed up somehow and you don't want to be around me. That's cool." I said, shrugging, though my own words hurt. "It's fine. I get it. It wouldn't be the first time I messed up. Kasanoda, you can go ahead and let her go."

Haruhi's hand was released and I started walking towards the direction of the finish line, but Haruhi hurried after me.

"K-Kohaku!… It's not like that!"

I waved a hand nonchalantly. "Honestly, Haruhi, it's fine. I'll be graduating soon and you won't have to worry about it anymore. I'll even let Kyoya know that I'll be too busy to stay in the club too, if that'll h-help." I cursed my quivering voice, clearing my throat awkwardly as I walked. "S-Sorry. I'll just shut up now."

"Kohaku." She moved in front of me and I stopped walking as I struggled to keep my emotions in check.

"I-It's fine, Haruhi. Really. I-I don't want to be a bother."

"Kohaku, that's not what's going on!" She said loudly, making me go quiet as she sighed and lowered her head shamefully. "I-I wasn't ignoring you because I was bothered by you. I just… I-I felt guilty. Your arm… It's my fault that you got hurt."

I felt my shoulders sag in slight relief, but gave Haruhi a worried look. "Haruhi, this isn't your fault."

She shook her head. "It is! I-If I hadn't told you to do something about Tamaki, then—"

"Then I wouldn't be able to live with the fact that I stood back and watched one of my close friends get hurt when I could've done something about it." I countered, thinking back to the kidnapping incident and feeling like a hypocrite. "And I'm so sorry that I allowed that to happen to you. I-I should have warned you about getting kidnapped at New Years, or stopped it, or something. But I stood back and allowed it to happen and I'm really sorry. All of this is my fault. If I did something, then you wouldn't of been scared a-and I would've found a way to help Tamaki without either of us getting hurt. A-And I would've helped you and—"

I was cut off as Haruhi wrapped her arms around my neck in a hug, not even realizing when I'd begun to cry.

"I'm sorry, Kohaku." She apologized, holding me a little tighter. "I'm a crappy friend. I shouldn't of pushed you like that when I didn't understand the kind of pressure you were already dealing with. I'm so, so sorry."

"H-Haruhi? I, um, accept your apology if you accept mine, and I'd hate to ruin the mood but… you're, um, k-kind of hurting me..."

"Ah!" She pulled back with her hands out in apology. "Sorry!"

I smiled a bit, straightening up and wiping the remnants of tears from my face as I let out a slight chuckle.

"It's okay. A-And I guess this makes us even. I got you kidnapped and you broke my arm. Fair trade."

She snorted with a small smile as well, as we began walking again. "Listen to us. We're ridiculous."

"As ridiculous as it gets." I chuckled. "Two poor cross-dressers hiding at a rich school. One who's psychic and the other who's clueless about love."

"Hey!"

"What? It's true and you know it." I said and we both laughed.

Ugh… I haven't been this tired since I had a manuscript due, a tournament, and a cold. I mentally complained as I pulled my dark red scarf up higher over the lower half of my face, walking past the school gates. Things had gotten a little crazy again with graduation coming up and I was having a difficult time getting to sleep. The movie director had been calling for more meetings to clarify some things on the script and making sure they had things ready for filming. Plus, I was still trying to finish said script and my manager was also meeting up with me to try and get my schedule sorted out. And I won't be able to deal with Kyoya's father until the announcement in May. I yawned tiredly, then turned my eyes to the commotion ahead of me. And then there's this craziness I need to deal with.

"No! I can't breathe! And my eyes keep watering! Pleased don't come near me!" Tamaki wailed on the ground in a panic upon embarrassing himself in front of Haruhi.

I wasn't the only one watching this spectacle though, and when the others showed up, Haruhi used the distraction to make a break for it.

"What is that? Making a fuss first thing in the morning? What a moron." Kaoru complained as Honey watched the insane blonde in amusement.

"Is it true Tama-chan finally realizes his feelings?"

"He told you directly yesterday, didn't he, Hikaru?" Kyoya questioned and said host grimaced.

"Ah, I guess..."

"He's only making things worse." I grumbled. "He may have figured things out, but Haruhi's still working on it. If he's not careful, he might just pushed her away rather than bring her closer."

Though I highly doubt that. I mused as Tamaki spotted us.

"Oh! Good morning, everyone! It's terrible! I've caught some kind of sickness that prevents me from speaking properly!"

I face-palmed as Kaoru sweat-dropped at the blonde tugging pitifully on his coat.

"You're talking enough to be annoying, so you're fine."

"Good morning, Tama-chan!" Honey greeted as Mori gave him a quiet greeting as well.

Kyoya just rolled his eyes and moved a little closer to me.

"Are you cold, Kohaku?"

I shrugged. "A bit, but I'm alright. More tired than anything. Work is getting a little out of hand."

"Ah." He hummed, sneakily taking my hand in his as I flushed slightly in embarrassment.

We were both distracted though, by what Tamaki told Hikaru.

"Haruhi is in love with me."

Hikaru blanched at those words. "S-She told you that?"

Tamaki just grinned smugly and gestured to Haruhi's form retreating into the school building. "No, but you can see it immediately from the way she acts. Overcome with bashfulness, see how she scurries away into the safety of the school building?"

"But the bell just rang." Kaoru countered. "Haruhi isn't the only one who'd want to hurry inside."

"But see how her face is flushed scarlet?" He tried again.

"That's because it's cold." Honey chirped. "Takashi and I are both red too."

Hikaru sighed, realizing now that Tamaki had nothing to back up his accusations. You sure are confident about your chances despite being so befuddled for so long that you couldn't make any kind of move until yesterday."

"Ah! About that… it turns out that it wasn't trauma after all!" Tamaki grinned, baffling the rest of us. "because I'm a genius. I wasn't traumatized."

"Oh, kill me now." I groaned. "I've witnessed the impossible; a genius Tamaki."

Kyoya's lip turned up into a small smile at that, as Kaoru tried to stop Tamaki from misunderstanding and possibly causing a fight with Hikaru.

"Uh, then what was with the whole ultra-serious mood you were in for so long?"

Tamaki put a hand to his chin. "Hm, I suppose one could call it a slump."

"Um, then what about all the effort we put in to help you with your trauma?"

"Ah! Many thanks for that I now fully understand how deeply you all love me. It's due to you all that I was able to reconfirm our friendship and discovered this miraculous thing called 'love'. I have been reborn." Tamaki rambled as Hikaru steadily grew angrier. "I do feel bad for you, Hikaru, but this is a conflict in which men must engaged. Not that I've confirmed Haruhi's 'mutual affections' for me, my heart is bursting with the warmth of spring. I know! Let's throw a party! A birthday party for the newly reborn me!" Tamaki grinned excitedly, bounding off towards the school building with Hikaru and the others stomping off after him.

"Heh."

I turned towards Kyoya with a smile at his small chuckle. "You're enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Quite." He hummed out, squeezing my hand before letting it go as we too, entered the school. "It's nice to know that Tamaki is still as idiotic as ever."

"Isn't he always?" I chuckled back.

(No one's POV)

Kyoya hummed quietly to himself as he wrote some things in his black notebook at a table beside the sleeping Kohaku. Everyone had been gathered so they could go over the plan for next month, but he'd recently been informed that Haruhi was—once again—at the library. He would have sent Honey and Mori to go get her, however, not only were they distracted by the strawberry cake Tamaki had brought out, but Kyoya also wanted to give Kohaku a chance to rest. He knew she was exhausted and working late hours, though he was a bit frustrated that she couldn't tell him about it. He already shared a lot of his own work her in order to cut back his own hours; enabling them to spend more time together. And getting her assistance proved to be more than beneficial with her knowledge of advanced mathematics, so he couldn't understand why she was reciprocating the action. She did mention something about a nondisclosure agreement, but to keep it even from me? He frowned slightly, before shaking himself out of it and turning his attention to the two bickering hosts in front of him.

"Why are you saying nothing but mean things?!" Tamaki argued with Hikaru, over what to write on a place card of all things. "Hasn't our many conflict been resolved?!"

"Resolved?! When and where was it resolved?!" Hikaru shouted back. "Anyway, Haruhi hasn't said she likes you, has she?! Getting all carried away misinterpreting a girl's feelings is incredibly uncool! Creepy stalker! Enemy of women!"

Tamaki looked stunned for a moment, but then placed a hand on Hikaru's shoulder with a smile. "If vilifying me will revive your spirits..."

The rest went unsaid as Hikaru picked up Tamaki's cake threateningly. "Let me kill him! Right now!"

"Calm down, Hikaru!" Kaoru begged, helping Mori and Honey hold him back. "If you become a felon, consider how tough it'll be on me as we have the same face!"

Honey had other worries though. "Hikaru, not the cake!"

"Let go!" Hikaru continued to shout, making Kyoya wonder how Kohaku could sleep through all this. "I hate myself for thinking for even a second that I could lose to someone like him! It isn't over this or that about Haruhi anymore! I cannot… I just cannot stand to lose to that idiot!"

Said idiot was too busy smiling at his reflection in a champagne glass to notice and Kyoya couldn't help the chuckle that escaped his lips; only further upsetting Hikaru.

"Don't just sit there laughing, Kyoya! Aren't you the one who sold us on the whole trauma thing in the first place?!"

"That's right!" Honey joined in. "Think of the cake!"

"Sorry, but..." Kyoya brought a hand to his mouth as he laughed. "I was just thinking, that it feels just like old times again."

Not long after everyone—sans Tamaki—had calmed down, Haruhi finally came around, making a face at Tamaki's birthday song.

"Um, is it someone's birthday today?"

"Haru-chan!" Honey happily greeted, whereas Tamaki immediately stopped singing and ducked behind the entry to another room; hiding much like a frightened animal.

"You're finally here." Kyoya hummed, moving to gently wake Kohaku. "Let's start the meeting."

"Right, but what's with that large person doing a small woodland creature impersonation?" Haruhi asked, eyeing Tamaki.

"Kaoru sighed. "Don't mind him. He's apparently gone a bit crazy rebounding from his long stint in serious mode."

"In other words, he's being an idiot." Kohaku yawned, making Haruhi nod in understanding.

"Haru-chan, sit here!" Honey chirped, showing her a place at the table Tamaki had decorated.

"Oh, thanks you." Haruhi spotted the place card then and picked it up. "What is this?"

Harassment? She wondered with a sweat-drop, eyeing how her name had been scribbled out and changed a few times. She didn't have long to think about it though, before Tamaki dashed up in a panic.

"No! We can get a custom-made couple name!" He blurted out, only confusing Haruhi even more.

"Huh?"

Kohaku though, raised a brow. "What, like a shipping name? Tamahi? Haruki? TamaHaru?"

"Don't encourage them." Kyoya lightly scolder her and she shrugged as Tamaki continued to make things more awkward between him and Haruhi.

"So we can get mar—Um..."

"Huh?"

Tamaki ducked back around the corner in embarrassment once more, as Honey brought Haruhi a piece of the strawberry cake that had been made.

"Since Haru-chan's here, we can eat the cake now, right? Here you go."

"Ah… thank you."

As Tamaki went over and quickly buried her cake piece in strawberries, Mori brought a salvaged piece to Kohaku, who took it with a small, sleepy smile.

"Thanks, Takashi."

"Ah."

Once he walked away, Kohaku grabbed the fork and went to cut a piece of the cake, only for Kyoya to pull it away.

"Hey!"

He pushed up his glasses with a frown. "I thought you didn't like overly sweet things."

She frowned in return. "When did I say that? And give it back!"

She reached across the table with a slight wince; her arm no longer in a sling, but still sore. Kyoya kept the plate out of reach though, still not looking too happy about something.

"You like dark chocolate."

Kohaku deadpanned. "Just because I like dark chocolate doesn't mean I don't like strawberry cake." She frowned then, brows furrowed as she eyed him suspiciously. "Alright, what's this really about?"

Kyoya pushed up his glasses again. "You shouldn't be eating so many sweets when you're not allowed to work it off yet."

Kohaku shook her head. "No. If that's what this was about, then you would've hidden my sodas at home. That..." She leaned over the table and pointed a finger in his face. "...and you pushed up your glasses. You're hiding something."

"Yes, this piece of cake." He replied, making to get up, only for Kohaku to use her fork to pin his sleeve to the table.

"Oops.~" She smiled innocently and Kyoya sighed.

"Kohaku."

"Uh-uh. Nope. Tell me what's going on, or I'll figure it out myself and tease you about it… relentlessly." She threatened and it was Kyoya's turn to frown, though he remained silent. "Alright, let's see… It's not about the cake and you were fine up until I got the cake so..." She paused, giving him a chance, but he just cleared his throat and looked away with the slightest hint of red on his cheeks as Kohaku smirked—having figured it out. "Oh. This is because of Mori, isn't it..."

"No." Kyoya lied and her grin grew.

"Uh-uh, this is definitely about him. You're jealous, aren't you?"

"I'm not jealous." Kyoya snapped, though Kohaku wasn't buying it.

"Yeah, you are."

"No, I'm not."

"Are so. Mori brought me cake and you're jealous." She said smugly, knowing that she'd caught him.

"I'm not jealous."

She shrugged suddenly, giving up. "Alright. You win. I was wrong. You're not jealous. So..." Her smirk quickly returned as she pulled out another fork from her jacket and took the cake out of his pinned hand. "...you won't mind if I eat this, right?"

Kyoya went to argue, but she cut him off before he could.

"Because if you stop me, that means you're admitting you were jealous. But you're not, so it's fine, right?"

She had him, and they both knew it. Kyoya had too much pride to let her eat the cake Mori got her, but stopping her would mean he had to admit he was jealous of the older male. Either way, he had lost, so now it was just a matter of which pain he'd rather endure. Begrudgingly, he sighed.

"Stop."

Kohaku paused, her fork in front of her open mouth as he went on.

"Honestly, twisting my words against me over a piece of cake?" He complained. "Why can't you show this kind of tactical genius against my father?"

She lowered the food with a raised brow. "Me? What about you, Shadow King?"

He rolled his eyes. "Just get your fork out of my sleeve and the table."

She grinned, knowing she'd won, and she freed Kyoya from said utensil. "Get me some dark chocolate raspberry cake?"

He rolled his eyes once more, but a small smile remained on his face as he got up. "I'll see."

When he returned with said cake for Kohaku, he almost took it back at seeing the other one missing, but she gestured to Honey and he gave her the cake he'd brought before turning to Haruhi.

"Speaking of birthdays, yours is coming up next, isn't it, Haruhi?"

She nodded. "Yes, it's February fourth."

"Yay! You're finally turning sixteen!" Honey cheered.

Kaoru made a face. "Wait, our birthdays were entirely skipped!"

"Not mine." Kohaku hummed, taking another bite of her cake. "Mine's May seventh. Not long after graduation."

"How old will you be, Ko-chan?"

"Twen—" Kohaku cut herself off from saying twenty-two and quickly changed it. "Eighteen."

"Wow! You're going to almost be an adult!"

She smiled a bit, but caught sight of Kyoya going to answer a phone call, and her smile slowly fell. Things were going to become difficult soon, and Kohaku knew that this happiness wouldn't last forever, She just hoped there might be something she could do.

(Kohaku's POV)

I sneezed loudly, rubbing my nose with a sniffle and a groan as I looked around the greenhouse we were in today as a treat for two of our regular guests; who'd won the curry-making tournament a while ago. Oh, I hope these sneezes aren't the beginning of a bad allergy attack. That's the last thing I need. I mentally pleaded as I wiped at my itchy, watery eyes. I jumped though, when Tamaki shouted across the area.

"Kyoya! Hey, Kyoya! Hikaru is trying to feed me to carnivorous plants!" He wailed, his hand stuck in a rather large Venus flytrap. "Kaoru! Hikaru is so mean! Do something!"

Hikaru chuckled darkly behind him. "Heh, heh. Your fingers will melt! Melt!"

No, they won't. I thought with a roll of my eyes, before I sneezed again. Ugh. The group of us managed to gather together though, to greet Kurakano and Sakurazuka.

"Welcome!~" Everyone greeted, though my greeting sounded more like…

"W-Welco—Achoo!"

"Are you alright, Kohaku?" Sakurazuka asked and I smiled politely despite how awful I felt.

"I-I'm okay. Some of the, uh, plants just don't agree with me, is a-a-achoo!"

I wiped my nose once more as her, Kurakano, and Haruhi gave me worried looks, but I spotted a beautiful red flower and hurriedly pointed it out.

"What kind of flower is that?"

Kurakano smiled. "it's a wax rose. Isn't it gorgeous?"

I nodded, leaning closer and brushing a finger over a petal as Haruhi looked it over too.

"Wow, that's very South American-looking, isn't it? Which reminds me, I had no idea your family was the financial backer of this botanical garden." She said, looking nervous, but the guests hardly minded.

"What kind of flowers do you like, Haruhi, Kohaku?" Sakurazuka asked.

"Uh, well I'm not too knowledgeable about flowers, but I suppose… though it's probably a bit plain sounding, I like rapeseeds for their deep flavor." Haruhi replied cheerfully, making the two swoon before they turned to me.

"O-Oh, um, I don't really know anything about flowers either, but… I-I really like sakura flowers. They don't have any where I'm from, so they are a bit more exotic to me. Achoo! A-Achoo!" I rubbed my nose and gave them all a small smile. "Heh, sorry."

The two girls blushed, but Haruhi eyed me in concern as we moved to look at another group of flowers. Before she could ask me what was wrong, however, we overheard the other hosts arguing about something.

"Why are you all so mean?!" Tamaki shouted, waving his arm at the twins. "Just the other day you all worked so diligently for my sake, pulling me out of my slump!"

"Yeah, but that's over now." Hikaru shrugged.

"We used up our lifetime supply of kindness towards you to do that, milord." Kaoru explained, also shrugging.

"Your lifetime supply?! That was it?!" Tamaki then turned to Kyoya, hoping he'd say something different, but he, Honey, and Mori were already walking away. "Kyoya?"

"To think you'd be such an idiot to lose a tournament we prepared so carefully for you to win." Kyoya sighed.

"Yeah. We're busy with a lot of things since out graduation is coming up, but we helped anyway." Honey complained, shocking Tamaki.

"Et tu, Honey?!"

"Here." Haruhi said, drawing my attention away from them as she handed me a handkerchief. "For your nose."

"Thanks." I muttered, wincing at the tightness of my throat as I took the handkerchief and blew my nose.

It didn't help though, feeling as though it only clogged it even more and I tucked the handkerchief away as I rubbed my itching ears; which felt hot to the touch. That's not good. I tried to take deep breaths, but I could hear myself wheezing slightly as I did so, and I silently wondered why my allergies decided to show up now of all times. I need to get something for this soon. If it gets any worse, I'm going to have a problem.

"Are you alright, Kohaku-kun? You've been sneezing an awful lot and your eyes are a little red." Kurakano questioned and I nodded, gently dabbing at my watery eyes; knowing that rubbing at them now would only make things worse.

"I-I'll be okay." I said with a small smile, only to have to turn away as I sneezed again.

"Are you sure?" Sakurazuka asked, a hand by her mouth in worry. "It must be a bother for you two to come here on your day off. If you don't have any interest in botanical gardens… and if you're not feeling well on top of that..."

Haruhi quickly shook her hands, not wanting the two to feel uncomfortable for inviting us. "No! While it's true this may not have been the sort of place I'd come to on my own, it's an especially good chance for me to learn something new. I'm really glad I came. Kohaku too, I'm sure."

I nodded, sneezing some more into the handkerchief as my wheezing grew slightly worse and tears threatened to spill from my swelling eyes. Haruhi, oblivious to my plight, just smiled at the two guests.

"Thank you so much for inviting us to such a lovely place."

The guests smiled in return and the four of us tried to continue our tour of the gardens, but with my allergies growing worse every second and the other hosts nearby squabbling, it was beginning to get rather hard to enjoy much of anything. And when the hosts finally noticed our unpleasant expressions, things only seemed to become worse for Haruhi and I. The two of us were immediately stolen away from the guests by the twins, after all, who then proceeded to show us various fruit trees.

"Bananas!"

"Huh?"

"Mangoes!"

Haruhi grew more confused. "O-Okay?"

Honey climbed up the mango tree then, picking one off before calling out to Mori as he threw it.

"Takashi! Mango!"

Mori caught it and used his brute strength to squeeze the juice from it into a glass, just as Kyoya's police force showed up; laden with trays of fruit, and a table and some chairs.

"Kyoya-sama! Where shall we place the table and chairs?! And the fruit?!"

"Yes, here will do." Kyoya hummed, as the men picked up Haruhi and I and deposited us into a couple of woven chairs.

"Come, Fujioka-sama, Nishimura-sama. Your seats await! Please sit down!"

While I was grateful to sit, I stayed slightly slumped over with my head bowed to hide my swollen eyes and tear-stained cheeks; wondering if there was any way I could get out of here before anyone noticed. I shifted uncomfortably as I grit my teeth in frustration towards my current condition; my hands fisted in the fabric of my pants to keep from scratching as hives raised up on my skin. I need to get out. I need to get out. I mentally chanted, wheezing as I peeked out from under my bangs in search of an exit. Instead, I spotted the idiot trio posing with bananas as Honey called out to us.

"Haru-chan! Ko-kun! Look at me! I can ride on top of this lily pad!"

I glanced over and had to admit, he did look rather cute sitting on the giant floating plant, but it was getting harder for me to breathe now and I couldn't focus on him for more than a second before I knew I needed to leave. Now.

I got up from the chair haphazardly and made for an exit as quickly and inconspicuously as I could, missing the look Honey gave me as he realized something was wrong. I heard a splash behind me—assuming the idiot trio had all tried to ride a lily pad and failed—but I didn't even turn around until someone grabbed my shoulder.

"Is everything alright, Nishimura-sama?" Tachibana asked as I tried to pull away.

"F-Fine." I wheezed out, wiping a hand down my face to hide it and attempt to get rid of some of the tears fogging up my—already limited—vision.

"You do not sound alright." He said, sounding concerned as his grip tightened slightly on my shoulder. "Should I inform Kyoya-sama?"

"N-No, please. I-I just… need to go."

Tachibana went to say something, but someone else spoke. The very person I didn't want to see me like this.

"Kohaku. Honey has informed me something may be wrong and now I find you trying to leave without anyone noticing? Would you mind explaining to me what is going on?" Kyoya asked, sounding suspicious. "If there is something you absolutely must have, I can arrange for Tachibana to pick it up."

"I-I need… to leave." I wheezed, hoping Kyoya wouldn't notice but, of course, he did.

"Tachibana, go prepare the car."

"Yes, Kyoya-sama."

The hand left my shoulder and I went to follow after the bodyguard, but Kyoya grabbed my upper arm and stopped me.

"Explain. Now."

"I need to go home." I hissed through my teeth; the place he was grabbing me starting to itch like mad.

"Look at me and tell me what's going on, Kohaku." He demanded, starting to sound angry.

I shook my head, not trusting my voice not to waver, nor wanting him to see me like this.

"Look at me!" He finally snapped, grabbing my chin to make me turn to him, but I desperately cried out.

"Please!"

He stopped, hand still on my chin as I spoke in a breathy wheeze.

"Please don't make me look at you."

His hands fell away from me and when he spoke, his voice was ice cold.

"Fine. Enjoy your trip home."

He walked off and I honestly wanted to stop him and apologize or explain, but I didn't want him or the others to see me. Not like this. I didn't even know how bad the swelling had gotten, but whenever I had allergy attacks before—in my old world—things always got really bad. To the point where I couldn't even recognize myself because my face had swollen so bad. And I never wanted anyone to see me like this. Then or now. Especially not someone who loved me. Someone who called me beautiful when I couldn't even call myself that. Much less when my face was swollen like a watermelon.

So with a sigh, I went home, being forced to use an epipen to stop my allergy attack and avoid going to the hospital at that point. I then raided my cupboards for oatmeal and went to take a bath in the hottest water I could handle; dumping the boxes of oatmeal in to help the itching. It helped a bit and after I drained the tub, took a shower to clean the oatmeal flakes off, and threw said soggy flakes into the trash, I went to bed; exhausted mentally and physically after the rough after I'd gone though.

(No one's POV)

Haruhi sighed, her breath fogging up the early morning air as she headed next door and knocked loudly.

"Kohaku! We're going to be late!"

There was no response and Haruhi rolled her eyes as she pulled out her spare key. This was, after all, not the first time Kohaku had slept through her alarm. So Haruhi made her way into the darkened apartment in annoyance, picking her way carefully through the papers scattered about the room and making her way to Kohaku's bedroom.

"Kohaku!" She called out. "You really need to get up!"

Still nothing, so Haruhi stormed into the bedroom and frowned down at the lump under the blanket before going over and pushing at it with her foot.

"Kohaku, get up."

The lump groaned, curling up further as they spoke. "I'm not going."

A tick mark appeared on Haruhi's forehead as she frowned down at Kohaku.

"Not going? You didn't even show up to dinner last night! Not to mention ditching us at the botanical gardens! Kyoya's ticked!"

"I'm not going." Kohaku repeated, pulling the blanket up over her head. "I-I can't."

Haruhi had had enough and, in one swift move, she yanked the blanket off Kohaku; who curled up in a tighter ball, keeping her face covered.

"I'm not having you ditch school this close to your graduation because you and your boyfriend are having a fight."

Kohaku sniffled and Haruhi stopped her assault with furrowed brows, staring down at Kohaku in confusion.

"I-I can't. He can't see me. N-No one can see me."

Haruhi's anger subsided as she dropped the blanket and looked over at the quivering ball known as Kohaku. And something told her this wasn't about Kyoya and Kohaku fighting.

"Kohaku? Kohaku, what's going on?"

Kohaku shook her head, bringing her knees up as her arms hid her face and her hands tightly gripped at the back of her head.

"I c-can't. I-I can't." She repeated and Haruhi hesitantly reached over and pulled Kohaku's arm away from her face.

What she saw suddenly made her understand why Kohaku was so adamant about staying home and why she was so upset. Her face, a little pink from crying, was swollen. Her eyes swollen to the point that Haruhi wondered if she could even open them, let alone see anything. And Haruhi let her go, allowing her to hide her face once more as guilt settled in the younger woman's gut.

"Kohaku, what happened? How did your face... get like that?"

"A-Allergies." Kohaku responded softly and realization dawned on Haruhi.

"The botanical garden..."

Kohaku nodded, joking bitterly. "S-Something didn't like me."

Haruhi flopped down on the floor. "But why was Kyoya so angry? Surely, he'd understand."

Kohaku shook her head once more. "I-I couldn't let him see me."

Haruhi mentally face-palmed. Of course! Kohaku's already insecure and is even more so with Kyoya, so… Haruhi looked over at Kohaku sadly. So of course she wouldn't have wanted him to see her like this. Haruhi got up and covered Kohaku once more with the blanket.

"I'll um, head to the store after school. Do you want some heat packs or something?"

Kohaku nodded, poking the top of her head out of the covers. "A-And some soda? I'm… running out."

Haruhi rolled her eyes. Same as always. "Yeah, alright. What do you want me to tell the hosts?"

"I'm sick with something extremely contagious. No contact for three days." Kohaku rattled off, making Haruhi snort as she headed out.

"You're so weird."

"And oatmeal!" Kohaku called out, making Haruhi pause and poke her head back into Kohaku's bedroom.

"What happened to all yours? I swear you had nearly five boxes in there."

"I-I… used it."

Haruhi blinked. "'Used it'?"

"...in a bath..."

Things went quiet before Kohaku groaned.

"it helped with the itching!"

Haruhi laughed as she headed out, calling back. "Like I said, weird!"

As Haruhi headed to school though, an idea popped into her head and—as much as Kohaku would hate her for it—Haruhi believed that she would thank her for it in the long run. Especially if it not only boosts her self-confidence, but fixes their relationship a bit too. She smirked as she looked up at the pink school. Sorry, Kohaku, but it's for your own good.

Kyoya pushed up his glasses in annoyance as he begrudgingly followed Haruhi around a small supermarket.

"Why exactly am I watching you buy..." He looked at Haruhi's small basket with furrowed brows. "...soda, oatmeal, and heat packs?"

Haruhi rolled her eyes. "It's not for me."

Kyoya scoffed. "And why can't Kohaku get these things herself? I'm not as stupid as she thinks. I'm not falling for the 'extremely contagious cold' she suddenly caught."

"That's why I'm dragging you along." Haruhi grumbled. "She's being stupid, I agree, but I figured that you would be the one to knock it out of her."

She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose as she took one of the grocery bags from the clerk and Kyoya grabbed the other.

"I understand that she's insecure, and I understand why she didn't go to school, but I think she should've told you." Haruhi shook her head. "Fighting over it is just ridiculous."

Something about the way Haruhi was talking about this made Kyoya suspicious.

"How much do you know, Haruhi?"

Haruhi went to lie and tell him she didn't know what he meant—since she was sure Kohaku didn't want Kyoya to know she'd told Haruhi about the two of them being together—but one look at Kyoya's expression said there was no way he'd accept anything but the truth.

"I know you two are together and have been since before New Years. She told me at the festival accidentally."

Kyoya sighed, pushing up his glasses. "She would." He turned his attention to the stairs as they went up to Haruhi and Kohaku's apartment, but continued. "So, what is it exactly that she finds more important than school?"

Haruhi unlocked Kohaku's door and pushed it open, heading back towards her own apartment. "See for yourself."

Kyoya frowned, not appreciating Haruhi's decision to leave him on his won with Kohaku after what happened, but his curiosity won out and he headed into the darkened apartment. He flicked on the lights, rolling his eyes at the papers scattered on the floor, and made his way into the kitchen to put away the groceries. It wasn't long, before Kohaku wandered out from her room and called out.

"Haruhi? Did you get the heat packs? I fell asleep, so I think the swelling got… worse..."

Kohaku stared at Kyoya in shock and he stared back in equal surprise at Kohaku's swollen eyes and cheeks. He went to say something, but Kohaku immediately bolted, forcing Kyoya to chase after her.

"Kohaku! Would you just talk to me?!" He shouted as she ducked into the bathroom and locked the door. "Kohaku!"

He pounded on the door, but stopped as Kohaku spoke up, sounding upset.

"S-Stupid Haruhi. She wasn't s-supposed to say anything. Y-You weren't supposed to see. Y-You weren't supposed to see me."

Kyoya sighed softly. "This is what you were hiding at the botanical gardens, isn't it?"

Kohaku's silence was answer enough and Kyoya wracked his mind trying to figure out what could have happened. She had been sneezing and when we spoke, her voice was raspy and she was wheezing. Asthma? No, that wouldn't explain the significant amount of swelling. It was then that he remembered something he'd looked up about her back when she'd first joined the Host Club.

"Allergies." He said out loud, eyeing the bathroom door. "You had a severe allergy attack."

"I-I'm sorry." Kohaku said shakily.

"You moron." Kyoya grumbled. "If you just told me, I would've..."

He trailed off, realizing that there wouldn't have been much he could've done, and he sighed.

"I wouldn't have gotten upset with you, if you had just told me what was going on."

"I-I didn't want you to see me." She murmured and Kyoya frowned, not understanding why this was such a big deal to her as she went on. "I-It's bad enough I look the way I do. N-Now it's even worse. I hate this. N-No one should see me like this."

Again. Again she puts herself down. Kyoya let out a frustrated sigh as he rapped his knuckles on the bathroom door once more.

"Unlock the door, Kohaku."

"B-But I don't—"

He cut her off, voice stern. " Unlock the door."

There was a moment of silence before a quiet 'click' rang out and Kyoya opened the door into the small bathroom. Kohaku sat on the edge of the tub, wrapped in a large dark blue towel that had a hood with a shark fin on top; something Kyoya couldn't help but snicker at.

"You're such a child."

"Shut up." She grumbled, though Kyoya caught sight of the redness in her cheeks before she hid her face in her arms. "Just give me the heat packs."

"They're in the kitchen." He replied, eyeing her for a reaction.

"T-Then go get them, or leave so I can get them." She said bluntly, meaning no harm; though the words could be taken offensively.

"Fine." Kyoya said, walking out of the room and to the front door, only to open it and close it before quietly sneaking back to the bathroom; leaning on the wall beside the door in wait just outside of her line of sight.

It was quiet for a minute or two, before soft sniffles came from inside.

"I-I didn't mean it… Y-You i-idiot."

Kyoya rolled his eyes and rounded the corner so that he was in view again. "Then I suppose it's a good thing I didn't really leave, isn't it?"

Kohaku began wiping at her eyes, trying to hide the fact that she'd been crying, but Kyoya knelt on the tiled floor in front of her and grabbed her hands to stop her.

"If you keep crying and wiping at your eyes like that, your eyes will swell more."

"I-I'm not crying." She sniffled, despite the tears slipping down her face. "M-My eyes are sweating."

Kyoya gave her a blank look. "You and I both know it's physically impossible for the human body to sweat through a person's eyes."

"A famous scientist p-proved it in a new study." She countered, continuing her lie.

"Name the scientist." Kyoya rebutted.

"Professor Shut-It." She grumbled. "He's partners with the famous Doctor Why-Can't-You-Leave-Me-Be."

Kyoya smirked a little. "Ah, their study must have been called Because-I-Need-To-Deal-With-A-Stubborn-Girlfriend."

Kohaku went silent, though Kyoya could see the tips of her ears under the towel go red, and he brushed his thumbs over her calloused knuckles.

"Kohaku, what did I tell you in France?"

"S-Something silly." She muttered softly, and Kyoya sighed for the umpteenth time that day.

"Kohaku, I don't care how you look. I don't care that you don't wear dresses or frilly clothes. I don't care that you have broad shoulders and look more masculine than feminine. And I most certainly don't care that your face is swollen due to something you can't control. All I care about, id how you feel right now."

Kohaku lifted her head slightly to peer out at him. "You're beginning to sound like Tamaki."

Kyoya frowned. "Don't compare me to that moron. He wouldn't know the difference between an allergy attack and a cold."

She chuckled a bit, but it quickly died out and her gaze turned to her knees.

"I-I like how I look." She murmured, surprising Kyoya with her admittance. "I like being masculine. I-I like having muscles and being fit. I like my broad shoulders a-and my short hair, but..."

She got quiet and her eyes started tearing up, so Kyoya stood, tugging her gently to her feet.

"Let's move to the living room."

She nodded, trailing after him like a child trails after their mother, and Kyoya sat her down on the couch before moving to the kitchen and bringing back a cup of tea for her and himself. He didn't say anything, waiting for her to calm down and continue from earlier; hugging her waist and pulling her into his side.

"I-I don't like my feminine features." She finally said, eyes focused on her half-empty cup of tea. "I-I don't like the way people look at me when I do something feminine, o-or what they say when they find out I'm actually a girl. They treat me differently. Like I'm weak or fragile or overly-emotional. I-I shouldn't have to be gay to have my hair like this, or dress the way I do. B-But… I-I want to be treated like a girl sometimes. I don't want people to look down on me, b-but I-I-I still want someone to understand that… sometimes I want to be called cute o-or have someone call me some goofy name like 'sweetie' or 'sweetheart'. I want to cuddle a-and coo at puppies and small animals without anyone laughing or asking if I'm drunk or if something's wrong. I-Is it so bad t-that I want to be strong and masculine, but still have someone to treat me like a girl?"

Kyoya shook his head and tucked her head under his chin. "No. No, it's not."

He hugged her a little tighter as she shook slightly and started to sniffle again.

"B-But then this happens. I-I just wanted t-to have fun, but then I started sneezing a-and I got itchy, a-and I knew I needed to leave. I n-never wanted anyone to see me like this. P-People would always stare a-and ask questions. My own family u-used to make fun of me for how I looked a-and even when this happened, a-and I just… I-I didn't want..."

Kyoya looked at her in surprise. "You thought we would do that? Kohaku, we would never… I would never..."

"W-What was I supposed to think?" She asked, pulling away from him as she pulled her towel closer around her. "I've always b-been made fun of for my looks and then this happens, a-and things only get worse. I can't even look at myself. H-How could anyone look at me when I'm like this and say—"

"You're beautiful."

Kohaku froze in place, slowly looking up at Kyoya, who looked at her seriously.

"W-Wha—"

He abruptly covered her mouth with his hand. "I'm not finished."

She couldn't say anything and just continued to stare in shock and confusion, as Kyoya sighed and took off his glasses, setting them aside.

"Honestly, I wonder how I tolerated you up until now with the constant belittling of yourself." He pulled his hand away from her mouth, but before she could get a word out, he pressed his lips to her in a passionate kiss.

He pulled away slightly, their noses still touching as his dark eyes bore into her blue eyes, unobstructed by the usual barrier of his glasses.

"Repeat after me. 'I am beautiful'."

Kohaku couldn't help the snort that escaped her and Kyoya frowned, seriously.

"Do it."

Her small smile fell and she opened and closed her mouth a few times, before turning her gaze downward.

"I-I can't."

"Yes..." He tipped her chin back up. "You can. Because you are and I won't have you thinking otherwise. Not now, not ever."

"I-I..."

She was struggling. As if those three words were physically impossible for her to say. And it actually hurt Kyoya to see her having such a hard time believing those words that he said to her. How long has she been like this? Put down to the point that she, herself, believes she's not worth such words. And as much as he cared for her, he was still rather confused by the intensity of these feelings he was having. To feel so worried and hurt because someone wasn't seeing how amazing they really were. To feel angry at the people who treated her this way; supposed friends, family even. And to feel so much care and warmth and loving towards her, despite how she appeared; face swollen or otherwise. But most of all, he has never wanted someone to feel happy and comfortable in their own skin more than Kohaku.

"I-I am b-b-beautiful." Kohaku finally said, face a bright cherry red in embarrassment as some tears slipped down her face, but Kyoya couldn't help the large smile that came over his face as he wiped the tears away and leaned back in.

"Yes. Yes, you are, dear."