"Lot Thirteen," the movie that the Host Club had "requested" was, in all reality...
"Waiii! Takashi! I'm scared!"
"Oh my god, did he just eat her finger?"
...very scary.
Tamaki was wincing at the visual image from behind closed eyelids, hoping the movie would end soon. The blond haired senior rocked back and forth in his seat on the carpeted ground. He really, really wanted his teddy bear at the moment. Instead of the familiar stuffed animal, he clung hopelessly to Haruhi's leg. She was the only member of their club that didn't appear to be bothered by the featured film. The "natural-type" found the whole movie to be extremely pointless and had also noticed that it lacked a plot. It was one that focused more so on gore and guts than an actual story line in order to entertain its viewers.
Even Takashi and Kyoya were visibly flinching at certain parts throughout the film.
Some time during the movie, all of the club members had managed to make their way over to the large sofa where the twins and Haruhi were. Hunny had been the first to join the three freshmen. He was terrified by the shrieks bursting through the loudspeaker as the murderer pursued its first victim through the empty parking lot. Takashi, always one to follow his cousin, had slid over to sit on one side of the large couch while Hunny claimed the spot on Haruhi's lap.
Ever the mastermind, Kyoya had walked over to the concession stand during one particularly disturbing scene, but on his way back, he had dropped into one of the unoccupied spaces on the couch with the seniors, the twins, and the girl. He offered them some of his popcorn, opting to ignore the "how-much-is-this-going-to-cost-me?" look from Haruhi.
Tamaki, who was seemingly always the last to catch on to just about everything, had been the final member to dash over to sit on the floor and clutch his "daughter's" leg as another bloodcurdling scream erupted from the speakers that surrounded the room.
Hikaru and Kaoru clung to the girl, horrified, as the killer ripped off another body part from one of its victims. Throughout the movie, the two tried not to turn away from the grotesque scenes, but often found themselves pressing their faces against their "toy's" neck in order to shield their eyes from the sight of the massacre taking place on the screen.
Twenty very long minutes later, the movie ended, much to the relief of the Host Club members. Even Haruhi was glad that the movie had ended, but not for the same reasons. Instead of being relieved that the horror had ended like the rest of her friends, she was instead feeling disappointed that she had just wasted a good two hours or so of her life on such a pointless movie when she could have been doing something that was worth her time like reading a book.
"I don't suppose anyone's hungry?" Tamaki bravely inquired in a soft tone as they left the theater and proceeded into the empty hallway. He didn't expect anyone to say "yes" because he knew that no normal person could possibly be hungry after watching such a film. He, too, had lost his appetite. It had probably been during the opening credits.
Hikaru and Kaoru sent their club president a dark look as they rested the weight of their bodies weakly against the girl standing between them.
"Well...we could go to the pool," Tamaki said. His idea was immediately shot down by the two twins who claimed they had just done that yesterday and therefore it would be boring.
"How about laser tag?" Tamaki asked.
The twins looked suddenly interested at his latest suggestion.
"Laser tag!" repeated Hunny, eyes widening in excitement.
Takashi nodded, although he'd follow his cousin no matter what the activity was.
Kyoya didn't have anything against the presented idea, and therefore agreed with the rest of his club members.
"Okay, laser tag it is!" Tamaki said before walking a few feet away from his club members until he was standing in front of another door. He opened it, and waited for the rest of his friends to join him.
Haruhi could feel her eye twitch. He had to be pulling these rooms out of thin air! Then again, she was still expecting an indoor amusement park to be lurking behind one of those elegantly painted doors. Although she had no idea as to what exactly the ship possessed, she was aware of the fact that she had plenty of time on board to investigate and experience the different attractions offered. If she didn't get around to doing it herself, she knew the twins would be all to happy to be the ones that would get to drag her along with them.
They filed into the dark room full of glowing, black lights and neon colors.
"Welcome," a man greeted them from behind a computer. He was dressed completely in white and was brightly glowing under the lighting, "would you like to participate in the next game?"
Haruhi glanced at the side of the room where a decently sized group of people were standing. Most of them appeared to be younger kids, but there were a few business men and women chatting amongst themselves. The group of people stood in front of a closed door, probably waiting for the current game to come to an end before being let in.
"Yes," Kyoya said, having walked up to the desk and was conversing with the man who appeared to be in charge of registration.
After Kyoya had a minute of very brief conversation with the man, the Host Club members were called up one by one to enter their names and to also receive a small chip with their data stored on it. After everyone had received their chip, they were directed to stand with the others across the room.
"So what name did you pick, Haru-chan?" Hunny asked the girl that the twins had, once more, latched themselves onto.
"Haruhi," she replied, looking at him like it should have been obvious.
The twins looked at her with an amused expression before chiming, "How unoriginal!"
"Huh?" she looked up at the two twins.
"Never mind," Kaoru brushed away her thoughts with a lazy wave of his hand .
Apparently, Haruhi later found out, she was supposed to have picked a codename. Maybe that's why the man at the main computer had been staring at her with a confused expression. She'd actually never tried laser tag before, so she didn't know she was supposed to come up with a creative alias to go by. Oh well. She didn't see anything wrong with her real name.
The twins had decided on "one" and "two" for their names. Hikaru was "one," Kaoru was "two." Having the same name in the same game wasn't allowed, so they went with what was familiar. Besides, nobody would be able to tell them apart inside.
Tamaki had decided on "Daddy" as his codename and the twins had gotten a laugh out of that, finding it hilarious. He was disappointed that he hadn't been able to convince Haruhi to change her codename to "Daughter." Hunny was "Usa-chan", in honor of the pink stuffed bunny still lounging on his bed in the room that he shared with his cousin. Takashi was "Samurai" and Kyoya was "SK." Haruhi could only assume it meant Shadow King.
"Or Suc-Ker," Hikaru joked when she had asked the "cool-type" if her assumption was correct.
Kyoya ignored both the comment and the question as the doors opened and they followed the crowd inside.
"Welcome," another man, also dressed completely in white, greeted the crowd that had just entered the room. It was spacious enough for everyone to fit inside without being cramped, but it was relatively small compared to the lobby area.
"My name is Lt. Davies, and I'll be giving you some quick instructions and some basic guidelines you'll be required to follow," the man said. He was extremely buff and intimidating looking, clothes glowing under the black lights hanging above and contrasting with his visibly darker skin.
"First off, I want you all to suit up by taking one of the vests from the wall," Lt. Davies said as he jerked a thumb to the side. The crowd shuffled over to the direction in which he had pointed, grabbing said item. Everyone slipped them over their head, strapping the object to fit snugly around them.
Lt. Davies had to help some of the younger kids, especially the ones that didn't quite understand what they were supposed to do. The rest of the crowd continued to look at him expectantly. Once he was satisfied that everyone was geared up properly, Lt. Davies continued, "Now, I want you to draw the gun that's situated at your hip and insert the chip into the slot on the top."
Haruhi did as she told, watching as her name flashed onto the tiny screen embedded at the top of the device.
"Alright. There are several spots where you can hit or be hit. Each spot is worth a certain amount of points. There's the chest, the back, the shoulders – either will suffice – and, of course, the highest point provider – the gun itself."
Looking at her gun, she noticed that there were spots on the side and one directly in front where the laser could flash. She realized it must be a tricky spot to aim for, let alone land a hit on.
"Time for some rules," Lt. Davies said. He gazed around the room with a stern expression before proceeding, "There's only two major rules: no physical contact with the enemy whatsoever and no taking off one's equipment at any time."
The crowd nodded in understanding, many of them anxious to start already.
"Haruhi, stick with daddy, okay?" Tamaki told the girl as they waited for the door leading to the course to open.
"My lord, I think we're better suited to take care of her," Hikaru said, cracking a devious grin under the dark lighting.
"Fathers are naturally better at ensuring their daughter's safety," Tamaki simply replied.
"Senpai," Haruhi said with wide eyes, "isn't the point to gain the most points individually?"
However, he didn't get the chance to answer (or in his case, look forlorn) as some of the panels on the floor slid open, causing half of the group to disappear beneath – Haruhi, Hunny, and Takashi included. Vanishing into the dark pit beneath, the surprised screams of those that had fallen were blocked off by the panels that had quickly shut behind them.
"HARUHI!" the twins and Tamaki bellowed, dropping to their knees and trying to pick up the panels. Nothing budged, though, and after a few seconds of trying, they could only look around at the equally shocked guests.
"Good luck," Lt. Davies said with a grin as the door in front of those remaining swung open. He always got a kick out of their reactions.