Chapter 5: The Ballad of Haruhi Fujioka

While everyone else ate, Hikaru went up to Haruhi's room to give her the homework so she wouldn't fall behind.

"Thanks," she muttered, pausing to cough up a lung.

"It's no problem. So, uh… what was up with that letter?" Haruhi groaned internally, knowing this would happen sooner or later.

"It's… It's from someone who calls themself my secret admirer. It's nothing. Really." Hikaru looked skeptical and picked up the letter from where it was sitting. He read over it and snorted in disgust.

"What a kiss up. Probably some loser who just wants to sweet talk you into doing his homework for him,"

"You mean like you do?"

"No," her friend claimed defensively, "when I do it it's endearing." Haruhi smiled and took the letter back, stashing it under her pillow. Hikaru always knew how to cheer her up.

The next day Haruhi was feeling better, and she had already finished all her homework. It was a Saturday, and Haruhi figured there was no better time to expose the elephant in the room than now. She went downstairs still in her pajamas (which consisted of one gigantic t-shirt that her parents had gotten on their honeymoon in the Caribbean and a pair of shorts) and said good morning to her dad. Haruhi took a deep breath. Now was no time for cowardice.

"Dad, we need to talk," the silence in the room seemed to fill Haruhi's ears like cotton, and she was almost convinced that he hadn't heard her. Then he spoke:

"Sweetheart, I know what you're about to say but give me a chance to-,"

"No," Haruhi said, struggling to keep her voice even, "I'm talking first. So listen. It's been ten years, but what the hell?! You didn't think to tell me you were going to try dating? I'm your daughter! I deserve to know these things! And even doing this in the first place… Did you even love mom? Do you even miss her?" Ranka was silent before he replied.

"Haruhi, I love your mother. I miss her and think about her every single day just like you do, but she would have wanted us to go on with our lives. I want you to know that the woman I'm dating now is wonderful, and I think you'd like her. I want you to meet-,"

"You stop right there," Haruhi growled, clenching her fists and gritting her teeth, "because I am never going to love whoever-she-is. She is not my mother."

"Haruhi, you've never met her,"

"That's not it, dad. It's just-,"

"Just what?"

"I don't want someone to take you away from me! I don't want a new mom! I want my real mom back!" her voice quivered and tears began to stream down her cheeks. Haruhi shut her burning eyes and turned away. She did not want to be here. She had to get out. Her father walked up to her and knelt down to talk to her. Impulse kicked in and Haruhi soon heard a loud SMACK and felt her palm stinging.

She didn't remember much after that.

Tamaki had been sleeping in when his cell phone rang. He saw Haruhi's name on the caller ID and flipped his phone open.

"Is something wrong?"

"I'm at the store. Come get me and take me somewhere, anywhere but home. I did something bad," Haruhi's voice shook and Tamaki heard her sniffle.

"I'll be there in five minutes,"

Tamaki had borrowed a car from his father's garage. Currently, the man was out of the country on business, so Tamaki had the run of the estate. The small girl in the backseat had pulled her knees up to her chest and was sobbing heavily. Tamaki didn't ask her anything; he could tell she wanted to be left alone right now. He would ask her later if she wanted to talk. For now, he would just-

"Senpai?"

That was fast.

"What is it, Haruhi?"

"Can you turn some music on? I don't like how quiet it is in the car." Tamaki smiled and nodded, grabbing a disc and popping it into the slot.

"I hope you like classical," he warned, "all I have is Mozart." Haruhi grinned weakly and nodded as a piano came to life. She watched as Tamaki seemed to relax more as the music went on, and remembered that he played the piano as well. She didn't know what these facts meant, but she felt like they were important, so she tucked them away in her mind for later examination. She also found herself getting lost in the notes soon enough. She almost forgot why she was in Tamaki's car in the first place.

Which made it hurt so much worse when she remembered.

Chapter 6: Sunshine Manor

When Tamaki parked the car in his driveway, he got out before Haruhi and held her door open for her as she got out, just as he had always been told a gentleman did for a lady. Haruhi smiled slightly, and to Tamaki it looked like a tremendous effort on her part. Tamaki took her hands and kissed the knuckles on each, then held them close to his heart. She gave him a strange look, so he explained.

"My mother used to do that with me. I thought maybe it would comfort you. Never mind, let's just go inside." He led her inside his large mansion, telling her stories about some of the things they passed (like the large hedge maze he had once gone missing in for three days when he'd first moved here from France). The tall boy then said something in French to a butler that Haruhi didn't understand, but the man nodded and returned shortly with some snacks. Haruhi gratefully took a fluffy pink macaroon, not really tasting it as she devoured several, mostly just eating because it was there and she didn't want it to go to waste.