Disclaimer: I do not own Ouran High School Host Club, nor do I have any part in the making of it. This is a fanfiction, made only for the purpose of typing out my thoughts and ideas. In no way did the events following this introduction actually happen in the anime/manga, and they never will. This was not made to have anything gained monetarily, but just to recieve feedback on my writing abilities, and improove based on your opinions of my work. I do not own any of these characters, excluding my OC's (origional characters). If you have read/watched the manga/anime, then you will know which characters are mine and which aren't.

Warning: This is a shounen ai / yaoi fanfiction, meaning there is romantic relationships (and a bit more-to-come) between two adolescent boys included. If this offends you in any way, or you do not want to read this, then I suggest that you stop reading now.

Anyway, this chapter was kind of hard to write, it has most of the events that occured in the previous version of chapter, just rearranged with new reasonings and such, which was kind of difficult for me. ._. Now it makes more sense, you'll find that why Tamaki pulled that stunt, and why he visits Kazuhiro to make more sense now. You also learn Kazuhiro's last name. ^3^ I also kind of wanted it to reflect on how Tamaki first treated Haruhi when they met, considering how he thought Haruhi was a boy. Yup. Horray for yaoi-ish moments in anime. And manga. Yup. On with the show! Or story... Enjoy what you can.

Echoed Voice

Chapter Two

Explainations, Recieved!

Kazuhiro curled on his bed, hugging his pillow tightly to his chest. Tears streaked down his reddened face, his hair matted down to his head from sweat. He breathed heavily and his heart was beating fast. I won't let any of them mess with my feelings. Any of them. Any of them! He repeated to himself thousands of times, but he couldn't help but remember how much each touch that his senpai made hurt. He knew it was fake. He knew it was. Just an act. Just for show. Just another form of amusement for their guests.

A soft knock sounded at his door. For a second, he suspected that it had been Kiyoko, but he quickly shook that thought away as he remembered she would simply barge in. It must be sensei... "U-Um... Sensei, c-could you please come back later... I-I don't wanna talk right n-now..."

"It's Tamaki, Numata-san." Kazuhiro froze. Not him. Not here. Especially when he was barely dressed. Nothing but boxers and a way-too-big long sleeved shirt that reached below his knees, and covered his hands.

"P-Please don't come in here, s-senpai." Kazuhiro stumbled over to his dresser in a clumsy maner. And, as if he had two left feet, he backwards and onto his rear. The noise that had came from the fall must have startled Tamaki, he quickly pushed open the door and hurriedly asked, "Y-You okay, Numata-san?"

Kazuhiro prayed that this was just a dream. Tamaki had stopped dead in his tracks, cheeks reddened at his possition. He was sprawled out on the floor, his shirt had been slipped up above his navel and his . His reddened cheeks and ruffled hair amplified his look of innocence. "S-Senpai!" Kazuhiro shouted. "I-I told you n-not to come i-in!" He quickly pulled his shirt down in attempt to cover his boxers and hide them from Tamaki's sight.

"U-Um... Sorry about that..." He came closer, extending his hand out for Kazuhiro to take. "Get up. The cold floor will get you sick. Don't want that happening, huh?" The same princely smile had curled his lips, forming a gentle smile. Kazuhiro couldn't help but continuously ogle at his handsome senpai. "Nu-ma-ta-san!" Tamaki sung, shaking his hand slightly, reminding himself where he was and of the current situation.

Hesitantly, Kazuhiro grabbed the blonde's hand and he was pulled up to his feet. He wabbled slightly, he had been laying down since he had gotten home from school and was still a bit lightheaded. He fell slightly towards Tamaki, groggily rubbing his tear-stained face with the extra length of his long sleeves. "Sorry, senpai. J-Just a bit tired, I guess..."

"Tired? No offense, but you look horrible..." A hint of symathy was hidden in his words.

"A-Ah... It's nothing. Don't worry." He sniffed a little, rubbing his face and laughing gently. He tried to act as natural as possible, as if he didn't feel as if his heart was about to explode and he was to die of nervousness. "So, what're you doing here anyway?" He quickly changed the subject.

"Oh, well I wanted to appologize for what I did before. I may have taken that act a little bit too far. I hope you'll forgive me? You seemed uncomfortable about it." A stab of pain was brought to Kazuhiro's chest. He knew it was just an act. He knew it from the first touch to the second Tamaki came in. But why was it affecting him more now than it had before?

"O-Oh. That's nothing... U-Um... I'm fine." Kazuhiro's voice was shakey and he studdered. It was a bit obviously hinted in his voice.

"You okay? You look a bit pale. Was it that bad?"

"I'm serious. It was nothing. But um..." Kazuhiro began to slightly giggle.

"What?"

"Could you please let me go?"

"Huh?" Tamaki blinked several times, before he realized that he was still grabbing on to me. He let out a light chuckle and let go. "Sorry about that."

"It's nothing." Kazuhiro smiled. In all truth, he wasn't really as calm as he had seemed. His heart was still beating rapidly, and he was so dizzy he felt like he was going to faint. "If that'd be all, would you like me to see you to the door?"

"That'd be fine, but-"

"My, my, Kazu-chan-senpai. Tamaki-sama is our guest, let him stay a while. Don't be so anti-social." Kiyoko interrupted Tamaki mid-sentence.

Kazuhiro sighed. "I'm not anti-social, I just don't like most people." He retorted. "He realized she had used "-senpai" when addressing him. He decided to use Tamaki as an excuse, though he felt guilty about calling him an excuse. "And we have a guest, I'll help you study later."

"Fine, fine. Just get downstairs. I'll help you with it later."

"Fine, just don't go into one of your detailed, too-confusing explainations of math."

"I'll try." He looked over to a confused-looking Tamaki, an expression that made it seem as if he was deep in thought. "Tamaki-senpai?" Tamaki looked up and smiled.

"Sorry. I just have a question." I nodded to show that he was free to ask. "You call her Kiyoko-nee, and she calls you Kazu-chan-senpai. Which of you is older?"

"Kiyoko-nee is older, though I'm a year ahead of her."

"Kazuhiro's only fifteen and already a second year. He skipped two grades, exceeded all expectations, including my mother's, and he out-smarts all of the other kids." She grinned evily, resting her head on mine. Being short has very few advantages.

Tamaki stared at Kazuhiro, his eyes opened slightly wider. "Wow, Numata-san. You're really smart. I'm surprised."

Kazuhiro slipped from underneath Kiyoko's chin and sighed. "Kiyoko-nee feels the need to exadurate my education. It's true I skipped a couple grades. And I may have exceeded what some teachers thought were possible. But I definitely don't outsmart anyone!" Kazuhiro's cheeks glowed pink in embarassment.

Tamaki chuckled. "You don't have to be embarassed by it, you should be proud about being as smart as you really are." He paused. "What class are you in?"

"I'm actually in your class." Kazuhiro stated.

"I can't believe I didn't notice you."

"I feel so left out." Kiyoko said in a fake, whining voice. "I'm a year behind you two, I can't participate in your conversations as much."

Tamaki laughed nervously, as if in appology. "Let's go downstairs, I can make something for us to eat while we talk." Kazuhiro and Tamaki nodded and followed her down the long halls and stairs until they arrived at one of the living areas, but not before Kazuhiro shooed them away so he could get properly dressed.

"Hm... I can't believe he fell asleep." Kiyoko sighed at the sleeping figure of Kazuhiro leaning against Tamaki.

"Yeah. He looks peaceful though." Tamaki smiled warmly at him. "Would you like me to take him to his room?"

"If it's not too much trouble."

"Not at all." Tamaki turned, wrapping his arms underneath him and picking him up. "He's fairly light."

"Yeah. He doesn't eat much, and he tends to just take random walks around the home."

"Why doesn't he eat much?"

Kiyoko sighed. "He thinks that he's a burden and that people are bothered when they do something for him. He's independant for most things, and hasn't really opened up to people since he left the orphanage." Tamaki stopped in his tracks. They had began making their way to the stairs, but stopped when he heard about the black haired boy in an orpanage.

"He was an orphan?" Tamaki stared wide-eyed at her, bewildered at her previous statement.

"Well, he still kind of is. My mother's getting the adoption papers in order to recieve full costudy over him."

"What happened to him?"

"Well, his father was a drug addict," They continued making their way up to the room. "He also drank a lot, and began cheating on his mother. She was sick of all the night-time fights and such, so she left him along with Kazu-chan. She was always angry, and Kazuhiro has a few scars formed form abuse-"

"He was abused?" Tamaki stopped again, astonished at the young boy's horrible past. Had he really been through so much in so little time?

"Sadly enough, yeah. Well, when his mother died in an accident, he was brought to an orphanage."

"I can't believe he's been through so much..." They stopped for the final time at the smaller teenager's bedroom door. "I'll put him to bed, and I'll be on my way. It was nice seeing you both." Kiyoko nodded, returning the gesture.

Kazuhiro's room was rather empty, now that Tamaki had looked at it. Only essential things were included in it, such as a bed, a bathroom, etc. Tamaki approached the younger's bed and set him down, breathing in a sweet smell of strawberries. It had came from Kazuhiro, and Tamaki had only just realized it.

As he withdrew from Kazuhiro, he took a moment to look at him. He was a cute little boy, and Tamaki felt a twinge in his chest he had gotten with Haruhi. He wanted to protect him, just as he did with Haruhi. To watch over him, to make sure that he would live peacefully from now on, with his dreadful past behind him.

I'm sorry if this is as horrible as it seems to me, it's quarter past one AM here, and I have a state-wide test today, and I just couldn't sleep so I decided to finish writing this chapter... Yup.

Also, if anyone would like to review me by e-mail, I would be glad if you did. I always read reviews and such, but this way it may be easier for me to respond. If you don't have an account, you could e-mail me as well.