Author's Note: Here's chapter three. I've actually preplanned this story to some extent!! It's only gonna be around 4 chapters I think.
Disclaimer: I do not own the twins or any other Host Club characters. I wish I could own Hikaru though. Buwahahaah!
More Than Us: Chapter 3
"I hope Kaoru's okay…" Hikaru sighed, leaning on a post at the edge of the wooden dock as he looked out over the water. Gentle waves rippled across the surface jostling boats, large or small is a matter of opinion, against one another. A soft breeze stirred the leaves in the trees.
"I'm sure he's fine…" Haruhi replied, not at all as certain as she was attempting to sound. She was worried about the younger twin as well, but Kaoru had insisted on walking back to her house alone, and worrying about him wasn't going to do anything but make matters worse, "My dad can wrap his ankle when he gets back to my place."
She scooped a smooth flat stone from the shoreline, and with a flick of her wrist it was sent skittering across the water's surface. Hikaru's eyes grew wide in awe at the display of skill. He'd never seen anything like it, it must have been a commoners' game! The twin pushed himself away from the post he'd been leaning on and tilted his head as he approached his classmate, "Oi, Haruhi, how'd you do that?"
"Huh?" The girl blinked and turned to face him as she bent to scoop up another stone. Straightening once again with another smooth, flat pebble in hand, she let out a small chuckle, "You mean you've never skipped stones before?"
"Skipped stones?" Hikaru shook his head, picking up a stone of his own, rough edged and round. He tossed it and was greeted with a resounding plop as it broke through the silvery surface of the water, scattering a small school of fish below. He narrowed his eyes in frustration, earning another giggle from his companion.
"No, Hikaru," She laughed with a smile. She took hold of his wrist and pulled his hand towards her so she could place the small smooth stone she'd selected earlier into his palm. He blushed, watching her as she bent to pick up another one, searching the pebbles for just the right shape, explaining, "You have to make sure it flat and smooth, the more so the better. Ah-hah!"
She held up a perfectly flat stone in triumph, earning a puzzled look from her friend, "If it's round, it'll sink. It has to be flat so it'll skim over the surface. Now, hold it like this."
Holding up her hand, she showed Hikaru the proper way to grasp the stone, loosely, not to tight. She nodded in approval as he mimicked her gesture, "Good! Now when you throw it you've got to flick you're wrist. And make sure not to throw it to hard."
Once more she relinquished her grasp on the stone with a flick of her wrist, sending it dancing across the water's surface, leaving a pathway of ripples in its wake. When the twin attempted to copy her action, his stone sliced through the glassy liquid and settled to the bottom of the waves. He closed his eyes and looked away with a disgusted sigh, "God, this is a stupid waste of time."
At first, Haruhi frowned, insulted by the comment. Then she sighed herself and shook her head, "You're throwing it too hard…you need to be more gentle. Think of it as throwing a Frisbee."
She scooped up another smooth, flat stone and placed it in his palm with a smile, "Here. Try again."
When her gaze met his she noticed a look of confusion, and very nearly toppled over in shock when Hikaru muttered, "What's a Frisbee?"
None the less, even without any knowledge of what a Frisbee was, her companion tossed the stone more gently, and this time it skimmed the water's surface, and he grinned in victory at conquering the commoners' game. Haruhi smiled at him, leaning to select another stone as she remarked, "See, you did it! Sometimes you just have to learn that harder isn't always better."
Hikaru returned her smile. He bent to select another stone as well, thinking as he did so that her words seemed to apply to his personality as well. When he was with Kaoru, he was fine because his twin understood his intricacies. But with other people, and by himself, he underwent a sort of transformation, becoming selfish and rough around the edges. If he could only learn to be gentle with people…more like Kaoru and Haruhi. He selected a smooth, flat stone, and together with the pebble Haruhi had chosen, it skimmed the waters surface.
The two paused, smiling at each other still. It was nice to enjoy some time alone with the girl he had grown so fond of, even if she didn't know just how he felt. Neither of them saw the younger twin still watching them from around the bend.
A small, almost sad smile played on Kaoru's lips as he watched the two enjoying themselves. It was a good thing, but that didn't mean it wasn't hard. Kaoru knew his brother needed to pull away from him eventually, and he was glad they had found someone like Haruhi who could bring him out of his shell.
Meanwhile…
Kyouya sat in the living room of his family's grand house, the business section of the newspaper open before him. He scanned the fine print, checking the status of the handful of stocks he had recently invested a portion of the club's income into. They seemed to be doing well. If only his father would notice his business savvy. He sighed, adjusting the glasses which were perched upon the bridge of his nose. At least Saturday was a quite time that he was able to spend away from Tamaki.
As if his mind had been read by that cruel mistress known as fate, the phone began to ring. Kyouya lowered the paper just enough to glare over it towards the phone, not that the harsh look would do anything to stop the incessant noise. It continued to ring, despite the bespectacled boy's best attempts to ignore it. Finally, patience worn thin, he snatch it up, "This had better be important, Tamaki!"
"How'd you know it was me?" The voice on the other end of the line replied. The so called leader didn't wait for an explanation, however, before launching into a frantic tirade, "Oh, it's awful! I can't find our precious little daughter anywhere! I've tried calling her, but Ranka simply hung up on me when I asked for Haruhi! What if something terrible has happened to her?!"
"She's with the Hitachiins." Kyouya answered simply, a long pause answering him from the other end of the line.
"Well, if you knew that, why didn't you tell me?!" Tamaki sobbed, "I can't leave her alone with those corrupt hooligans!"
"It didn't seem important. And don't go dragging me into any sort of scheme to spoil this date." The more mature boy grumbled, hanging up abruptly to cut off Tamaki's whining.
Author's Note: And there you have it. I couldn't very well leave Tamaki out of the story all together, now could I? I like how the chapter came out. squeeeee Hikaru's so cute! I hope I stayed IC…sorry if I didn't.