Chapter 16-

When Hana awoke, the first thing she thought was, 'This is not my bedroom'

Sitting bolt upright in the bed, she whipped her head around frantically. As realization swarmed through her, she yawned, already fully awake. Sitting up, the bed threatened to drag her under. It was an amazing bed; comfy and soft, but it didn't feel right. Hana didn't think anything but her own bed would feel right. Sure, there was that spring that threatened to jab into her side, and her pillow wasn't nearly as fluffy as this one, but it was her bed.

This bed, no matter how comfy, was undeniably a guest bed and this room was also undeniably a guest room. It was decorated to the bare minimum, yet it still managed to be extravagant. Honestly, the Ootori's couldn't even make a guest room without being opulent.

Rubbing her eyes as she dragged herself away from the remnants of her sleep, her mind immediately began to whirl. What was she going to do? Where was she going to go? She couldn't stay here forever- she didn't know if she wanted to. And how could she leave Sakura in the hands of that man? Sakura was so young, so sweet; so gullible and naive.

No, she couldn't leave Sakura. But could she leave Kyoya?

She had a sinking feeling in her gut that she couldn't. She hadn't been lying when she'd said that she loved him. But to leave Sakura, and to let Sakura go to France, all alone... Sakura would have to make friends. What if she was bullied? What if she was-

"Ah, I know that expression"

Hana shrieked and fell onto her bed. Scrambling, she looked up. She already knew who it was. His voice was easily recognizable to her now.

"Know what expression, exactly?" She demanded.

"Its the one you wear when you're about to become extremely stubborn" Kyoya said, an amused smirk on his face, "Also, let me add argumentative and defensive. You've been thinking about whether or not you're going to stay here"

"I'm regretting that I told you about it" Hana groaned, then threw a pillow at him, "And get out of my room, you perv"

"Your room?" He arched an eyebrow, "Anyway, like I said last night, you can stay here. You don't have to go to France. Honestly, you could live here and my father wouldn't notice. He has a strict routine of which he barely breaks"

"I know" Hana pressed her lips together, "And believe me, I'd like to stay here and just forget about everything. But I can't run away from my problems. I've got to face them head on. I've been trying to run away from my father for eight years. I need to settle this"

"Wise words" Kyoya said, "They'd probably sound better if you weren't in your nightwear"

Hana tugged the blankets around her, covering herself and glared, "Pervert"

"It's not like there's anything to look at" Kyoya quipped, then said quickly, "I'll bring breakfast in half an hour"

He quickly escaped before Hana could kill him.

"How dare he" she seethed, "Nothing to look at. I can't help it if I'm slightly flat-chested. I'll give him nothing to look at when I skewer his eyes!"

After her rant, the energy seemed to seep out of her, and she once again resumed to musing through her problems.

"Kyoya" Hana said, thirty minutes later, "You said breakfast"

"I did" he agreed.

"So what is this?" She made a sweeping gesture with her arms.

He smirked, "Breakfast. For the upper class"

"A feast for you rich snobs" Hana translated.

"I suppose you could call it that"

"You're lucky you came up here with food" Hana said taking a mouthful, "Otherwise I'd have killed you for your rude comments"

"They're just hones-"

She glared at him and he clamped his mouth shut.

"So" she said, "Any ideas how I should deal with my dick of a father?"

He shrugged, "Yell at him. Reason with him. I don't know, I've never met the man. But that's if you want the direct approach. I don't know if you've noticed, Hana" he pushed his glasses up slightly, and they flashed as they caught the light, "But I'm not one for the direct approach. Let's sabotage him from behind the scenes"

A smirk widened on her features, "I like your idea"

"I have contacts. If you give me the scheduled flight time, I can cancel it. I can have him accused of crimes. I can speak with his associates in France and make him lose his job. The choice is yours"

"Hmm" Hana considered, "You're sneaky"

"And that's why you love me"

"I love you because of the arrangement of your facial features"

"And because I'm sneaky. Who runs the Host Club again?"

"Tamaki" Hana said, managing a straight face, "Host Club King. Not only is he good looking and charismatic, he's really smart in the world of finance and-"

In a few fluid motions, Hana's breakfast plate was on the floor, she was lying down in the bed, and Kyoya was on top of her, his face inches from hers.

"Tamaki?" He breathed, "Smart in the world of finance?"

Hana grinned, "Jealous, are we?"

"Of him? Never" he leaned down, captured her lips with his for a few dizzying seconds, then leaned back up, "Would he be able to do this?"

"Damn it" Hana muttered, "Would you get your face away? It's kind of distracting. I can't think of a sarcastic comment"

His smirk grew, but he said nothing. The humor in the moment died, and Hana asked softly, staring into his dark, dark eyes,

"Kyoya? In all seriousness, what do you think I should do?"

"Just try your best. I think that honesty, in itself is the best policy. However, there are times when honesty doesn't work, and that's when you have to lie, and lie convincingly. A half-hearted lie is easy to see through"

"The flight is sometime tomorrow he said. I've got one day-"

"We've got one day. You're not alone in this, Hana"

She let a true, sincere smile coat her features, "Thanks, Kyoya"

So many different emotions passed through his eyes in that moment, and Hana wondered how she could have ever doubted his feelings.

She leaned up, kissed him, then said, "Now get off me. I want my food"

"Ah, so those are your true intentions. You only like me because I feed you"

"Did you honestly think I was here for anything else?"

The rest of the day was a blur, and when the next day came, Hana was full of nerves. Her flight was in about six hours, and she still had no idea what she was going to do.

She'd just left the Ootori household. Her flight was scheduled at five thirty, and it was currently twelve o'clock. Her mind was a mess, a swirl of conflicting feelings and emotions as she tried to decide whom was more important to her, and whom she could sacrifice. However, she continually came to the same conclusion- she couldn't sacrifice anyone. They were all too important to her.

And now, she was walking back to her apartment, the first time in two nights. Dressed in Kyoya's older sisters clothes, which were slightly too big for her, she walked uneasily through the familiar path.

Family or friends? France or Japan? Old or new?

"Honestly," Hana muttered under her breath, "I have no freaking clue what to do"

Her mind was still in turmoil when she reached the apartment. She knocked on the door, then waited, anticipation crawling through her, making her uneasy.

"Hana," her mother exclaimed, relief evident on her face, "You're okay"

"I stayed over at a friends house" Hana said, walking past her mother without an invitation, "Is he here?"

"No, your father left earlier to do some last minute business. Sakura is here, though"

"Sis!" As soon as the words left her mothers mouth, Sakura charged over to her, engulfing Hana's bottom half in a tight hug, "You're back!"

"I am" Hana said gently, her posture relaxing slightly, "How are you? You feeling okay?"

"I'm fine! How does it feel being sixteen?"

"I wish I could go back to being fifteen" Hana said honestly, "It's not fun"

"Huh? But daddy's back, and we're going to go and live with him! Isn't that awesome?"

"No, it's not. This is our home. Why do you want to leave?"

Sakura wrinkled her nose, "But it's boring here. In France, it'll be exciting, and lots of fun"

Their mother interjected, "See, Hana, everyone is looking forward to this trip. You should too"

Hana looked at her little sister, then at her mother. They had been the only two constants in her life, the people she'd always considered her safe haven. When she was teased at school for being too studious, she'd come home and Sakura would be able to cheer her up, and her mother would inspire her to world harder.

But now things were changing, and staring into her little sisters eyes, realization dawned on Hana like a ton of bricks.

"I'm not going" she said simply, "I'm staying here. I'm sorry"

"Stop joking, sis" Sakura's voice shook slightly, "Of course you're coming with us"

Hana looked away from her sister, and looked at her mother, "I'm staying here" she repeated.

"Don't be silly, Hana-"

"No" Hana said firmly, "I like it here. I like my school, and my job. I like my boyfriend, whom you don't know about because you were too busy talking to my father to acknowledge my social life. I haven't rebelled once in eight years, and I've always gotten perfect grades, no matter how much effort I had to put in. Let me stay here for two more years until I graduate. Then I won't be your responsibility any more"

"Hana" her mother said sadly, "You weren't just a responsibility. You were- no, are, my daughter. However, your scholarship to your school will run out. I'm glad that you made friends, and it goes to show that you can do it again, when you start over in France. Come with us, Hana. You're our family"

"Yeah, Hana" Sakura added, "You're my sister. Why don't you wanna come with me?"

Hana wavered, then strengthened, "I love you, Sakura" Hana assured her younger sister, meeting her big brown eyes as emotion tore through her, "I always will. No matter what"

"The come to France!"

"I'm sorry" Hana managed, her throat clamping, the words becoming even more difficult to say, "I'm really, really sorry. I love you. Even you, mother" Hana returned her gaze to her mother, "But I can't go to France. I can't live with... My father" even now, it was still a struggle to call him that, "This is my home now. I don't want to leave, and I'm not going to leave"

Her mother regarded her, then took a few steps forward and embraced her, "I love you, my beautiful daughter. And it's amazing to see you growing up, right before my eyes. I'm sorry I didn't tell you about speaking to your father"

Hamas eyes began to water, and tears slowly began to trek down her cheeks. Her mother continued, "However, this is a chance for Sakura and I, to finally climb out of poverty. You've already found your chance, at your school, and you've grabbed it. I'm very proud. But now we are going to chase our own dreams, and if you're not coming with us, you cannot stop us"

"But-"

"I will arrange things for you to be able to live here. Your father should be able to pay for a one room apartment. As for your scholarship running out, we'll deal with that bridge when we cross it"

"I don't want you to go" Hana said, her voice muffled against her mother's shirt, "France is too far away"

Her mother dropped a kiss on her forehead, "I don't want to leave you. But I want to give Sakura, and myself, a chance at a better life"

"He's gonna let you down again"

"Oh, ye of little faith"

Hana took a step back, a deep breath, "I have to go and speak to him now, don't I?"

"Yes" her mother said, a smile on her face, "You're not a coward, Hana. You're many things, but you're not a coward" and then she added, "And you, my brave girl, are going to introduce me to this boyfriend of yours"

Hana accepted the compliment with a nod, then left the apartment that had been her home for eight years. As she left it, she left her old self in here. Her old self that had been biased by hate and prejudice. She left the girl who ran away from her problems, the girl who hid from her bullies, who had hid from her father, and who had hid from Kyoya.

And she left with a smile on her face, her shoulders back and a new strength in her eyes.

Somehow, everything worked out.

The conversation she'd had with her father hadn't been pleasant, but it had been necessary. He made no attempt to reconnect with her and neither did she. It had been over in under ten minutes.

She supposed that maybe one day, she'd try to fix things with him. As it stood, she still wanted nothing to do with him. She'd changed, but not that much.

Her mother did end up meeting Kyoya. It was at the airport, as they'd been leaving. Somehow, in between the teary farewells, he'd managed to quickly say, "Hi, I'm Kyoya" before being shoved aside by Sakura.

The few days after they'd left, Hana did nothing but mope. She had to hand it to Kyoya, he never complained about her attitude once. He was comforting and snarky, somehow compassionate but distant.

A month or so after, Tamaki delevered brilliant news; he'd managed to convince his grandfather to allow Hana a continual scholarship until she graduated, with the condition that her grades were not allowed to drop, and she was not allowed to cause any trouble. This was, apparently, the only way to appease the rich parents who were seething about not one commoner, but two (Haruhi included) given a continual scholarship.

Speaking of rich parents, Hana was introduced to Kyoya's parents a month or so after her own family went to France. It was expectedly awkward, expectedly tense and expectedly awful. Kyoya's father was polite, but she could tell underneath his smile he was plotting fifty different ways to kill her. The shame of having his son date a commoner was only eased by the fact that Kyoya was his third son. He said as much, and Kyoya was so pissed off the only way Hana could calm him was to help him scheme in overthrowing his eldest brother and taking the business.

Hana was the official charity project of the Host Club. It basically gave her an excuse to goof off in the Host Club during lunchtimes for free. It was incredibly entertaining watching Haruhi's pathetic attempts at flirting. It was also incredibly entertaining to see Tamaki in action.

When the year ended, Chris left. Apparently, her father had finished business in Japan and was now moving to Russia to build contacts there. Hana, reminded of her own family leaving, encouraged her to stay. However, Chris left, claiming that the constant moving didn't bother her, and that she enjoyed starting over. Hana didn't believe her one bit, but wished her luck and commanded Chris to call her regularly.

Also, when the year ended, Honey and Mori graduated. Honey declared that he would spend the rest of his life running a cake shop, and opened one up. Mori, of course, supported him all the way, however after four months the shop collapsed due to terrible business decisions made by Honey.

The Host Club was a lot more quiet without the two of them, but Tamaki was determined not to let the spirit die down. With five members, they still ran strong, although in Hana's opinion it would never be as great as it once was without the addition of Honey and Mori. Without them... It just wasn't the same.

As for her and Kyoya, they became one of the most infamous couples of the school. Some were convinced it was true love (why else would Kyoya date a commoner?) or that it was just a stupid fling (gosh, I couldn't believe she was such a slut). Hana didn't really care, however whenever she overhead someone discussing the rumors, she'd pull them aside and give them a piece of her mind. The days of running away from her problems were over.

Time continued to pass. Soon, Kyoya had graduated. He had started medical school, and Hana joined him a year later when she graduated. Both of them were outstanding, although Hana continuously she was being beaten by him. Somehow, he managed to stay just a step further than her. It was infuriating.

It was on the day of the end of her second year at medical school when Kyoya really surprised her.

"Where are we going, Kyoya?" Hana inquired, tying her hair into a high ponytail, "Nowhere too stupid, please"

"Oh, nothing of the sort. As for where, wait and see" he flashed her a grin, and she had to resist not to roll her eyes.

"It's awfully suspicious if you're driving" Hana said, "Honestly, with all your chauffeurs, I thought you'd forgotten"

He laughed, "How could I forget, when you're always yapping to me about not being conceited? Or ungrateful, and I quote 'for all the things I've been blessed with?"

"Oh, shut it" Hana muttered, a light blush in her cheeks, "I'm just trying to teach you modesty"

"Well, good luck with that" he smirked, "The day I become modest is the day I die"

"True"

There was silence for a few minutes, then Kyoya asked, "Have you spoken to your father recently?"

"Yeah, last night. Apparently Sakura's birthday is coming up, and we need to get her a present"

"Ah, that'll be simple. Give her money"

Hana glared, "Kyoya. It's a birthday. We have to give her an original present, to show that we put a lot of thought into it"

"You put a lot of thought into it" Kyoya corrected, "I don't do anything, apart from take the credit. How old is she now, anyway?"

"Thirteen. A teenager. She'll be rebellious now"

He chuckled, "As rebellious as you were?"

Hana sighed dramatically, "Let's hope she doesn't study too late. Or meet any boys"

"Ah, but she doesn't attend Ouran High, does she? That's where all the good looking men are?"

"So you finally admit that Tamaki is superior in looks to you"

He made a gagging sound, "He is not superior"

"Yeah, well, I doubt Tamaki would force me into a car and drive me into gods knows where, unlike a certain someone I know is doing. Like rught now. In this very car"

"If he did, I'd kill him" Kyoya said airily, "As for the secret place, we should be just about there"

Hana looked put through her window, trying to figure out where they were. When she did, a laugh erupted from her, "Ouran High?" She gasped, "We're going back there? Kyoya, I finished my second year of medical school today. I want to spend tonight partying and relaxing, and not studying. I don't want to spend it-"

"Ah, but you do. You'll remember this day for years to come"

She eyed him suspiciously, "I wonder why"

He pushed up his glasses, looked over to her and smiled. Even now, a smile from him was enough to make her heart race.

They parked, and Kyoya began to walk brusquely away. Hana had to half-run, half-walk, to keep up, "You're not being very chivalrous" she huffed, "You drag me back to my high school, and then you ditch me. Is this even allowed, by the way? We're not students anymore"

They were inside the academy now, and Kyoya didn't respond. When they reached a room, Kyoya nodded. Uncertainly, she pushed open the giant double doors, as familiar to her as they always were. The light streamed in, however the rose petals and the chorus of voices, chanting, 'Welcome to the Host Club' were missing. Hana felt a pang as she realized the Host Club was no longer in session. Not anymore.

They stepped in. Then Kyoya started speaking.

"Years ago" he began, "In here, I met a girl. She was poor. She had no social status. She had problems with her family. She had a little sister whom she cared for too much. I knew straight away when I found that she was enrolling that she would be an easy target. Those who care for others care little for themselves; and that stood for you. You were willing to date me, so that you could gain money to help your family"

He continued, "But that plan had too many holes. Your personality was something I never could've guessed. You weren't meek, and you weren't stupid; you were intelligent, sharp, sarcastic and very, very dangerous. After the month was up, I ditched the plan"

"But I couldn't get you out of my head. So many things have happened, and yet for some stupid reason, I still love you. And that's why" and then he fell to bended knee, a small case in his hand, which he opened, revealing a huge, sparkling diamond, "Hana, will you marry me?"

Hana stared at him for a moment, trying to process everything that was happening. Then she grinned, "Your dad is never going to accept this"

"I know"

"You marrying a commoner will make rich single girls all over the world start crying? Especially the former Host Club clientele"

"I know"

"Then as long as you understand that, yes, I'll marry you"

He slipped the ring on, stood up, and kissed her. There was heat behind the kiss, and as she kissed back, Hana was full of so many different emotions, she couldn't describe them. At all.

"You should go back on bended knee, husband" Hana murmured, "It suits you"

"Fiancé" he corrected, "And I will never lower myself to such a filthy position again for as long as I live"

"Aw, you're adorable" she cooed, "You love me so much, you'll go on bended knee?"

She was expecting a snarky comment. Instead, he said, "Yes. Haven't you realized?"

He was embarrassed. Hana smiled softly, "Y'know, if the me from high school knew I'd be marrying you, she'd think I was on drugs"

"Good thing you're not here"

"Definitely" she agreed, then kissed him again.

THE END

Don't believe the above words. This is not the end.

But it definitely is the end of Hana's part. There will be about three more bonus chapters. One, which I've been dying to do since the start of the series, is a chapter about all the events from Kyoya's view. Another is an epilogue, and one is from Hana's graduation from high school.

After that, there will be no more. There will definitely not be a sequel.

Im feeling sad, but happy too. Writing this was a blast, and developing Hana's personality was amazing. Initially, Hana was meant to be a female Kyoya, nothing more, nothing less. But then she began to develop. She had a family, a job, friends. As more of her began to show, I enjoyed it more and more, and I hope you guys enjoyed reading it.

Whether you started reading yesterday, or a year ago, when I first started, thank you so much. If you simply read, or you reviews, or followed, or favorited, I'm honored you took time to read a newbie writers attempts at a story. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH!