Hikaru POV:
When it became blatantly obvious that I had lost him, I slumped against the brick wall of the alley in defeat. My chest heaved in breaths that burned my lungs, but I hardly noticed. Slamming a fist into the wall and ignoring the pain that crept up my arm, I cursed. I had been so close, had literally touched him…! Dammit, what was he thinking? Why the hell had he run? I glanced around me, realizing that I had absolutely no idea where I was. Pulling out my cell-I was relieved to see I had reception—I chose Tono's number from the contact list.
"Hikaru, where are you, I told you to wait—" I cut him off sharply.
"I know where Kaoru is." There was a brief moment of silence.
"Nani?"
"I saw him. He dyed his hair black, but it was him…! He took off, and I tried to follow, but he led me through all these damn alleys and I just wasn't fast enough-" Tono cut me off.
"Hikaru, where are you?"
"I…I don't know. Somewhere on the north side of town."
"We're coming to find you. Stay where you are." A thought occurred to me.
"Tono, she knows. My mother knows. She's coming home and she is going to call the police-"
"I understand. Don't worry, Hikaru. We're on our way." With that, the line went dead. I took a shaky breath, placing my phone back in my pocket. I didn't know why it mattered so much that I be the one to find Kaoru. I guess I just knew that if someone else found him first, he'd never open up to me again. How I knew that didn't matter in the slightest; what did matter was that the thought of Kaoru so cold and distant was enough to bring me to my knees.
Forcing myself to my shaky feet I started to backtrack, intent on finding my way out. The knowledge that Kaoru was here in this part of the city was, in itself, a blessing. Even though I hadn't been able to catch him, I had still found him, and that was half the battle.
After what felt like decades, I found myself back on the main road. By now the streets were filled with passerby and the shops were open. I strolled through the streets, keeping my eyes peeled for any sign of Kaoru. Out of nowhere a force collided with my back and I stumbled forward, turning my head just in time to see a mop of familiar blonde hair at my side.
"Hika-chan, Hika-chan, did you find him?" Regaining my balance, I turned around to face Hunny-Senpai and the rest of the Host Club.
"Iie…" I said in a defeated voice, my mood turning sour again. Tamaki sighed rather dramatically, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Well, at least we know roughly where he is now," Tono said. Kyouya-Senpai nodded, jotting something down in his notebook.
"The next step would be to try to locate where he's staying." The Shadow King's dark eyes flickered over to me. "Hikaru, any ideas?" I shook my head, my bangs falling into my face.
"No…when I found him I was by a park. There were no apartments near there." Kyouya-Senpai nodded thoughtfully for a moment, his eyes calculating.
"Well, he has to live somewhere close by. After all, you called me at 5:30 in the morning and found Kaoru not long after. Unless he's living on the streets," my eyes widened and a look of pure horror crossed my face. Kyouya-Senpai continued, adding quickly, "Which I'm sure he's not, chances are he lives close by."
I bit my lip contemplating this. It made sense…but I knew Kaoru. When he wanted to be, he could be just as stubborn as me, sometimes worse. Would he really stay here now that I had found him? I shook my head in an effort to clear it. No, he would most likely move on. However, he couldn't just pack up and leave in a day. He'd have to talk to the landlord, pay his dues…If I could find him before he had the chance to run again, then there was still hope…
"He won't stay here," I mumbled out loud. Kyouya looked up from his notebook.
"Beg pardon?"
"Kaoru won't stay here now that I've found him. He'll run again; he'll probably be gone by tomorrow." I could feel five pairs of eyes staring at me, but I was too lost in my mind to care.
"So, that means…" Haruhi started. I nodded.
"We'll have to find him before then." There was a collective moment of silence, and then…
"Alright. Everyone has their cell phones, right?" Tamaki-Senpai's eyes were wide and oddly bright with a look of the utmost determination. When we all nodded, he continued. "We'll split up. If we cover the area, we'll have a better chance of finding Kaoru." Before we could split up, I spoke up.
"Wait." They all turned back to me.
"What's wrong, Hikaru?" Tono asked.
"Don't approach him…If you find him…please, don't approach him. Call me instead." I met Tono's lavender stare and I knew that he understood.
"Un. If anyone finds Kaoru, call Hikaru. Understand?"
"Hai," the others chorused together.
"Good. Then let's go!" I watched as the others slipped off in different directions. Pushing my hands in my pockets I started forward again. I'll find you, Kaoru. No matter what it takes, I'll find you.
AN: Happy Friday, everyone! As a reward for making it through the week, I give you the next chapter of Lost and Found! Enjoy!