"...is he okay?"

"T-T-Tama-chan..."

"...the hell is the doctor?"

"S-sempai?"

Tamaki opened his eyes to the relieved smiles of the host club.

"Kyo-chan, Kyo-chan! He's awake!" Honey said with giddy.

"Mitsukuni, inside voice."

"Tono, a-are you feeling alright?"

"What happened?" Tamaki asked, still groggy from sleep.

"Sempai, you had a heart attack."

"Actually," Kyouya began once he came into the room, "what Tamaki had is something called takotsubo cardiomyopathy."

"What's that?"

"Broken heart syndrome. It mimics the symptoms of a heart attack when one is presented with emotional stress."

"So when Tamaki-sempai was feeling stressed, his heart started to fail?"

"Basically. However he'll be okay, physically at least," Kyouya added after seeing the sadness in Tamaki's eyes. "Haruhi, is it okay if you stay here with Tamaki while we go to get lunch?"

"I don't mind." The hosts waved goodbye as they headed out the door. Haruhi turned back to Tamaki. He kept looking down, unable to face her. He rubbed the dried tears stuck to his clumped eyelashes. His eyes were puffy and his hair was ruffled. She caught sight of the scars on his wrist were visible, but didn't ask. This is almost surreal, seeing Tamaki this depressed, and not like his usual sitting-in-a-corner depression. I know exactly what he's feeling, and I know just how hard it is to let that feeling go.

"How did you do it?" He asked in a low voice.

"Do what?"

"How did you move on when your mother died? I can't even sleep without seeing her in my dreams. I...I miss her...so much, I-" he paused when he felt a small sob forming inside him.

She placed her hand on Tamaki and gently rubbed circles on his back. He placed his head on his knees, an attempt to hide just how broken he was.

"You know," she began, "before joining the host club, I was never able to talk about my mother so freely. I thought keeping it buried inside was the best thing to do. But when you told me about what it was like growing up with your mom, it made me think about the good times I had with mine. I realized I wanted to remember every meal we made, every story she read me, every trip into town we took. And it helped me forget how much it hurts. If you ever want to talk about the memories of her, I'll be happy to listen." He looked up at her, wearing a faint smile.

"Same here, Tamaki." Kyouya and the rest of the gang returned with a comforting smile on their faces.

"Tama-chan is not alone, he has us." Honey said with the twins grinning in agreement.

Mori placed his hand on Tamaki's shoulder, causing more tears to fall.

"I-I'm s-sorry for the w-way I treated you guys!" he bawled out.

"Alright Tono! We forgive you. Just don't flood the whole hospital," Hikaru joked.

"Take it easy, Tamaki. We don't want you to have another heart attack," Kyouya warned him.

The doors burst open as a middle-aged man barged in.

"Tamaki!"

"Dad?"

"Oh thank God you're alright," he sighed as he wrapped his arms around his son, "I thought I was going to lose you too." He gently pulled away and cupped his hands on Tamaki's face. "You look so much like your mother...and I couldn't face you because of it."

"D-dad," Tamaki sniffed.

"I'm so sorry I wasn't the father you needed me to be. I'm going to everything I can to make it up to you. I promise."

•••

Tamaki's father had to leave for a business meeting so the host club stayed as long as they could before they were practically kicked out of Tamaki's room. Since Kyouya's family owned the hospital, he stuck around a little while longer.

"Thank you," Tamaki said to him, "for telling them. I don't think I would've been able to do it myself."

"I still can't believe it took me so long to figure it out."

"Haruhi didn't tell you?"

"I knew shortly before she said anything."

"How?"

Kyouya handed him the card he dropped, the grim reaper illustrated on the front. The blonde sighed.

"I should've told you, then none of this would've happened." Kyouya shook his head.

"It's perfectly normal that you weren't ready to accept your mother's death. I shouldn't have pushed the way I did."

"Everyone's going to ask a lot of questions now that they know about my mother. I don't think I can handle it."

"Don't worry, I'll help you out."

"Thanks..." Kyouya caught sight of Tamaki dozing off, his head bobbing as he fought to stay awake.

"You should get some rest."

"C-could you stay until I fall asleep?" Tamaki asked.

"Sure."

It didn't take long for Tamaki to drift off into dreamland. Kyouya watched as his face relaxed and his chest rose and fell with every breath he took. He flipped the light switch off before he sneaked out the door, leaving the prince in a state of peace.