It was growing dark by the time the two reached the Hitachin mansion and Hikaru was slightly surprised to find a limo parked on the driveway with one of Tamaki's chauffer's standing beside it. He shot the blond a look.
"I told my driver to pick me up from your house," Tamaki explained. "You didn't think I was going to walk home in the dark all by myself did you? Its too dangerous."
"The thought never crossed my mind, Highness," Hikaru replied wryly.
The driver bowed to both boys, then opened the back passenger door for Tamaki. Before he got in, the older boy turned to the younger.
"Take care of yourself, and give Kaoru my regards," he said. "I'll see you tomorrow. Goodnight!"
"Goodnight, Highness," Hikaru replied.
He continued up the drive and ran up the few steps into the house, as Tamaki got into his car and drove off. His mother met him in the main hall as he entered.
"Mom," he said. "How's Kaoru?"
"Sleeping," she replied. "The doctor was here to see him earlier."
"Is he going to be alright?"
Lady Hitachin sighed and went into the parlour where she sat down on one end of a plush sofa.
Hikaru followed her, growing worried. "Mom?"
"Come and sit with me," she said.
The boy did as asked, and sat beside his mother on the sofa, looking at her with large hazel-green eyes that were full of concern.
"Did Tamaki-san leave alright?" she asked.
"Yeah, he did. He just left," Hikaru replied.
His mother looked back at him. "Kaoru covered for you again. No, not about how you were coming home. You two fought again didn't you?"
Hikaru nodded. "He said he wasn't feeling well, and I didn't believe him. I thought he was only pretending and got angry with him because I felt he was just trying to get attention." He buried his face in his hands. "I want to tell him I'm sorry, but… something's wrong isn't it? He's serious…".
Lady Hitachin put an arm around her son and drew him closer so he could rest his head on her shoulder, then gently ran her fingers through his soft, red-brown hair.
"Kaoru's down with a fever," she said. "The doctor said its probably a flu virus of some sort. He gave him some antibiotics to prevent any secondary infections like a cough or cold, but said it was best to let Kaoru get over the fever on his own."
"Will he be okay?" Hikaru asked softly.
"Your brother's stronger than you give him credit for sometimes," she replied. "Or else I wouldn't be flying off to Milan tomorrow."
Hikaru blinked. "Wait, you're leaving? But what about Kaoru? Who's going to take care of him?"
"I believe he has a twin who would do all he could for him. I wouldn't be going if Kaoru didn't give me his blessing, Hikaru. And I have faith in you. Who else can I trust him to if not his own twin brother?"
"Mom… what if… what if I screw up? What if I'M not strong enough?"
Lady Hitachin gently raised her son's head to look at her. "Being strong doesn't only mean fighting. It also means having the courage to put aside your own fear to care for someone else. You may have a lot of things in this life, but you only have one twin, Hikaru, and he needs you."
Hikaru closed his eyes for a moment, trying to focus. He was scared. He was scared, but he didn't want to admit it, especially after what his mother had said about strength and courage. He thought about Tamaki and what the boy had said about taking things for granted. Had he always taken Kaoru for granted?
He thought about Hani's words. The senior seemed to know what he was talking about. Was that because of the relationship he had with his own younger brother? Did Hikaru want his relationship with Kaoru to be like that? Nothing but fighting and resentment. No, he decided he didn't.
In that case, he knew he had to stop thinking of himself and focus on Kaoru. It was that simple really. He opened his eyes and looked at his mother again, filled with a sense of determination.
"Kaoru's right," he told her. "You should go. I'll look after him while you're away."
Lady Hitachin leaned and pressed a kiss on the bridge of her son's nose. "I knew I could count on you. I trust you Hikaru, I know you wont let me down."
The boy gave his mother a light hug. "I love you, Mom. You wont be away long will you?"
"I'll be back on Monday." She touched his cheek. "Now… go on, finish your homework and get some sleep. You still have school tomorrow."
"Where is Kaoru?"
"A guest-room, close to your room." She raised her hands as Hikaru started to protest. "It was at his request. He didn't want you to get sick as well."
The older twin sighed. Even when sick, his younger brother still wanted to look out for him. He stood up and made his way to the door. "Goodnight, Mom."
She joined him. "Goodnight Hikaru. I love you, too, son."
Hikaru headed upstairs to the room he normally shared with Kaoru, which now felt strangely empty as he stepped inside, stripped off his uniform and went to take a shower. The rest of the night was spent doing his homework in the study so as not to be distracted by the absence of his twin, who would normally have been glancing over his shoulder to check if he was doing his English correctly.
As he padded softly back to his room when he was done, he passed by Kaoru's room and unconsciously stopped at the door. A longing to apologize for what he had said earlier compelled him to quietly enter the chamber that was now bathed in silvery moonlight.
Kaoru lay stretched on his right side facing the window, soundly asleep in nothing but a singlet and a pair of shorts. A blanket lay haphazardly over him.
Hikaru let out a gentle sigh and quietly went up to his brother, looking down at him fondly for a moment before bending and spreading out the blanket, draping one end of it over the sleeping boy's shoulder. Leaning over, he pressed cool lips to his twin's hot, flushed cheek in a light kiss.
"I'm sorry, Kaoru," he whispered.
He straightened, took one more look at his other half, then quietly left the room, not noticing when Kaoru stirred, cracked his eyes open and murmured "Hikaru", before returning to sleep.
Going back to his room, he curled up on the large bed, which now felt rather cold and empty without his brother's presence there to keep him warm. Huddling under the blanket, he pulled Kaoru's pillow into his arms and hugged it tight, pressing his nose to it and inhaling the calming sweet-spicy scent of his twin's hair. It was the next best thing to having Kaoru there in person.
Closing his eyes, Hikaru willed himself to sleep, telling himself that he needed his rest if he was going to look after Kaoru well over the weekend. In spite of his worries though, exhaustion finally took over and he was asleep in minutes.
Neither twin knew when their mother woke just before dawn and silently entered each room to kiss them goodbye. She leaned over Hikaru and gently stroked his hair before kissing his forehead.
"I'm proud of you Hikaru," she murmured. "I know you wont let me down."
Entering Kaoru's room, she carefully touched his forehead to check on his fever, and drew her hand back just the little bit worried since there had been no apparent change to his condition from the previous day. She leaned over and pressed a soft kiss to his cheek, just like Hikaru had done earlier.
"Get well soon, my Kaoru," was the whisper in his ear. "And forgive your brother. He still loves you."
She left the room, then made her way downstairs to the waiting car, summoning to her those servants who were closest to the twins.
"I'm leaving Kaoru to Hikaru's care," she informed them. "I believe this will be a good learning experience for them both, therefore I am requesting that none of you interfere unless in dire circumstances."
The servants bowed their understanding and proceeded to go back to their chores as she got into the limo and drove off from the mansion.
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A/N - Thank you to all reviewers once more, i'm glad you're enjoying this, cos eventhough the theme here is quite serious, i'm having alot of fun writing it and delving a little deeper into their characters.. -SoRomantic- you'll see Kao-chan in a while, the poor boy needs his rest after all... -Hikaru- even as i write this fic, i have a bunny nibbling in my headspace about a concept of Tamaki and his mother.. we'll see what happens..
Speaking of mothers... without spoiling vol 6 of the manga, i'll just say that i love the Twins' mom... she comes across as a person with a very fun-loving personality, though she can be serious when the need calls for it, and she's beautiful... and i get the idea that if she takes a liking to you, she can be really nice to you in a genuine way. She is also the head of the Hitachin household, the name 'Hitachin' being their mother's last name, so i see her as being quite smart too... so i couldnt wait to write her... this might not be the last you see of her either... she will definitely appear in at least one more chapter, before the end..