Koko: Awe, thank you. I never really knew how to write them but I'm glad you think my jon is brilliant :) And I updated after long last!
Fanajalo: I updated :D
It's a Joke: HEY. Me too XD Not that I don't like Tamaki's wackiness or anything ;)
SoBe-Yummies: Good you say? Well I sure hope so cause I'm just going with the flow on this one XD
Tenten628: Thank you for saying my fic is good looking XD Any HikaxHaru goodness is good goodness :P
Forsaken Avenger: Everyone seems so excited to see where this one goes o.o I hopeI do good XD
VIP: Tell me about it. I personally woule rather date Hikaru (and only if Kyoya wasn't an option), but that's just me :)
Lady Maeror: I love him too! I do not like Haruhi's being taken by him though :/ I hate that too and trust me I'll make it as gradual as I possibly can ;)
Kassehface: That's alot of lovin' you go there o.o Um...Is this soon? XD
Ultimate Host: Yep. After manga but there'll be hints of the anime in here too :)
Tamafanowo: Why thank you :D Let's hope it stays that way
The restaurant was one of the finest in the city, or it was at least in the opinion of a group of people who had grown accustom to the fanciest and well-prepared meals money could buy (with the average 'commoner's' meal here and there). So, in that sense, it was remarkable by Haruhi's basic standards. It wasn't a particularly big place either, obviously build for small gatherings and quick lunches, but it offered outside seating within what looked like a large plastic tent connected to the building that was warmed by heaters in the rough shape of lampposts.
It was here Haruhi and Tamaki found the rest of their discrete club. They had barely stepped towards the table when the twins' pointed identical, accusing fingers at the duo.
"You're late." They scolded, clicking their tongues in disappointment and shaking their heads in an interesting mirror effect. "Typical commoner."
Saw that one coming…Haruhi inwardly sweatdropped but didn't bother arguing that the fault could be traced back to Tamaki for not waking her up earlier (after all her actual alarm clock had had a very unfortunate encounter with the floor and her foot not too long ago). Aloud she said, "Thanks for meeting here by the way."
"We couldn't very well meet at your work again, could we?" Kyoya asked, in the way of one who knew they were right and therefore didn't require an answer, as he looked at Haruhi with an amused twinkle in his dark eyes. "Not after our last experience."
"Well what did you think would happen? You guys can't just barge into a place like that and not expect people to react the way they did," Haruhi said matter-of-factly. In truth the whole incident, while utterly stressful at the time, was now one of the highlights of their days in America.
It had been about the second week of the club's move when Haruhi had started to work in one of the city's better restaurants as a waitress, figuring her days of hosting would make it a cake-walk. And it had been, until Tamaki had blabbed to the twins that she had taken a job (something she had strictly told him not to do that he insisted had slipped when the twins threatened him with the beheading of his teddy bear) and the twins, and a reluctant Kyoya, hadn't so much as stopped in for a visit as they did slam through the doors and demand to know why Haruhi hadn't informed them about her employment. At the time Haruhi had been one of the many workers serving a private birthday party of mainly females that reminded her greatly of the girls they used to serve, but she didn't know exactly how much until they had all laid eyes on the unsubtle male hosts (who had been described by one girl as 'undeniably sexy', Haruhi remembered). For a split second Haruhi was worried the girls would invite the hosts to join them but it turned out they would rather squeal in delight and chase the hosts out of the building like a wave of groupies, which was all fine by Haruhi.
That'll teach them to bother me at work again, she thought with an inward smirk. Not that it mattered because she still had a hard time convincing the other employees the hosts were just friends when before she had already had a hard enough time explain to them how she could be dating a 'majour hunk' like Tamaki.
Thinking back on all this, Haruhi was just about to wonder when the boredom she had felt earlier today had come around when someone came by to take their orders, breaking her from her thoughts.
"So..." The twins began slyly once the server had left, turning equally mischievous looks to Haruhi. "How's your relation with our former king doing?" From the way they said it, it wasn't clear whether they were generally curious or just trying to irk Tamaki.
Either way, it irked Tamaki. "That's none of your business!" The former king declared before Haruhi could even twitch a mouth muscle to answer.
The twins held their hands up in defense, wearing identical grins. "No need to get so defensive. It's just too weird to see you tied to one girl, boss." They said earnestly.
"Besides," Hikaru shrugged. "We're only asking because we're concerned."
"We think of Haruhi as a little sister," Kaoru elaborated.
"And we wouldn't want her to be hurt by some idiot," they finished together, giving Tamaki furtive looks. "That's all we're sayin'."
"You do realize we're the same age, right?" Haruhi asked them levelly while wondering when they got such mellow personalities compared to their old ones. Though there was still that unmistakably gleam of trouble in their eyes Haruhi realized that they hadn't ribbed Tamaki further on the matter, something she once knew they would never pass up.
"Yeah, but you're a girl and we can't have other guys taking advantage of you," the twins said reasonably.
Then, as if to prove their point, another one of the restaurant's customers, a male, walked by their table back to his seat. But not without winking non-too-subtly at Haruhi, who blushed and looked away hurriedly, only to find that most male eyes were being thrown her way. Oh great…she thought, shifting her gaze down to the table. Now I know how a zoo animal feels…
Rather unamused at this development, the male portion of the former Host Club turned their own glares to each and every one of the eyeballers set on their female companion. If looks could kill, it was a given every one of them would have been blown to smithereens in a matter of seconds.
"Mind your wandering eyes you hooligans!" Tamaki exclaimed and that was all they need to turn back to their menus and food. After all, in this country an angry blonde will only lead to something that no one wants to get involved in, no matter how attractive the girl next to him was.
Only once the inside of the tent was back to normal, though now somewhat tense, Kyoya adjusted his glasses further on the bridge of his nose before saying, "Did you hear that Mori and Honey got accepted into Ouran University?" He asked as if the conversation had come about naturally rather than abruptly.
"Like there was ever a doubt," the twins scoffed with identical shrugs. "The school would have to be ten kinds of crazy not to accept them."
"Heck, we could get in there without any problem if we really wanted to," Hikaru figured, though it was obvious from his tone he had no such plan.
Kaoru nodded in full agreement. "Too bad it's too dull for our taste, I don't know how Honey-senpai and More-senpai can stand it."
"Well, maybe their standards aren't as low as yours," Haruhi remarked, but there wasn't much effort behind it. "Still...I wish they could have come with us, I think they'd like all the chaos over here. It keeps me entertained, that's for sure."
Tamaki gave the female a look of curiosity. "Does that mean you don't feel bored anymore?" He wanted to know, secretly hoping she was. There were many of the female's moods that his naturally playfully personality could deal with on its own but this new one left it useless and, frankly, the former Host King wasn't sure how to handle it, which bothered him. Though he didn't dare show it in front of the twins.
"Wait..." The identical brothers said slowly, as an even slower smirk spread on their identical faces. "Haruhi? Bored?" The brothers turned to each other with looks of feigned shock before looking at the female. "Maybe we should come around more often then, huh? You know, liven things up a bit?"
"No thanks," Haruhi refused bluntly, knowing the twins' livening things up would be the equivalent to a small twister passing through her life. There was far more harm intended than good, she knew.
A few minutes later, several waiters returned with the group's food, effectively minimizing their chit chat, though there was the odd comment here and there. While years of nibbling on fancy assorted foods had its perks, the former hosts weren't the last to admit that the subtly of American food was almost as enjoyable as what they were used to.
In fact, they would say it wasn't just the food that made studying abroad enjoyable. There was something about being among people of a different origin that almost excited them, which wasn't as hard to understand as some might think while considering how the original hosts had acted when they had first met Haruhi. In a way, they all found it…fitting. The Host Club had been more than just a school club formed with the intent of 'pleasing young ladies', something much more. Everyday had been an adventure, whether it was big or small, and when the club had disbanded they each had the same concern of their lives going back to the way they were before meeting each other. Yet, something in them all said life would never be the same again and when the opportunity to go abroad came up they took it willing. And being so open to change was something a few of them would never been able to do if they hadn't been exposed to it on a daily basis.
Hence this adventure lay before them with the promise of excitement around every corner. Yet that feeling of monotony still clung to Haruhi like an anorexic leech. Even as the female tried to convince herself things would look up and that they just needed time to adjust, something in the back of her mind said otherwise while another part of her nagged at her that she knew what was causing it. She just didn't want to admit it…
"Earth to Haruhi!" The twin's voices penetrated the females thoughts, effectively bringing her back to reality some minutes later to find the other staring at her either puzzled or indifferently. The twins shook their heads in mock disappointment, "Boy, you really are out of it, aren't you? Did you even hear a word we just said?"
Judging by the sudden flush on Haruhi's cheeks, they were willing to bet the answer was no.
"We were just discussing a journey to the beach," Kyoya filled in helpfully. "It would be a shame not to take advantage of the thinning tourism when one can enjoy a walk without having to avoid others."
"Besides," Tamaki added, obviously hooked on the idea and willing to say whatever he could to convince her to go. "The weather is far too pleasant to simply ignore and be cooped up inside for the rest of the day."
That Haruhi agreed with, plus being stuck inside all day would do nothing for her mind and her mood. "Sounds good to me," she said when it became apparent they were all waiting for her answer.
After a short celebration from Tamaki and the twins, the meal was paid for and they set off on foot for the beach. Or at least they did the latter after a quick 'potty break', as Tamaki so childishly put it, however the 'quick' part was somewhat diminished seeing as how the twins (being the last ones) took the temporary break with the absence of the others to strike up a conversation between each other.
"I still don't know what's so great about him," Hikaru half stated, half grumbled as he stared into the bathroom mirror at his own miffed reflection before shifting his eyes to his brother, who was leaning on the opposite wall.
Kaoru sighed, knowing full-well his brother could see. It was the sigh of a person who heard this statement often and saw no signs of it disappearing in the near future. "That's not true and you know it." He said calmly, meeting his brother's gaze evenly. "Get over it already. Get over her."
Hikaru closed his eyes irritably while ignoring the little voice in his head telling him that, like most times, Kaoru was probably right. "Aren't you supposed to be encouraging me? Wasn't it you who kept telling me I need to open up to people?"
"Would you rather have me lie to you?" The younger twin asked, already knowing the answer. "Face it, you had your chance and there's nothing you can do now. Just be happy she didn't end up with a complete moron and get on with your life."
While the last part wasn't said as anything more than a suggestion of common sense, Hikaru still felt a ping of anger towards the subject...Or maybe anger wasn't quite the right word. Envy seemed to fit better, jealousy was better still. The older twin would never admit it out loud but he did have a certain extent of jealousy towards Tamaki even if it was directed mostly at his relationship with Haruhi. Even from the first time he'd met her there had been something different about the female's commoner behaviour that interested him and, though he wasn't sure when, he had become interested in her too after a time. He hadn't realized just how much he had come to like the lone female member of the club until she had admitted to having feelings towards the club's founder. It was a bittersweet feeling overall. He was happy she was happy, but not so much happy that she was happy with Tamaki. It was complicated, but Kaoru was right...What could he do?
There was a peaceful setting about the beach that day. The weather, while fine to the former hosts, didn't promote many others to visit the stunning blue-green water , which left the beach clear of the usual summer crowds of hyperactive children and impish teenagers. A gentle breeze pushed the tide to shore before gravity claim it once again in a game of tug-a-war that was within inches of touching the feet of the group walking on the shore in a relative, but comfortable, silence. Already, the sky was showing reds and oranges of sunset, casting long shadows along the sand and turning the water into a golden pool.
It was times like this, Haruhi thought, that the time she spent with the Host Club seemed like a dream. It was hard to believe that she had spent nearly her whole high school life living by the sides of six strangers she now thought of as family, and most of whom had agreed to come with her to study abroad. It had never really crossed her mind that something like that would happen to her given her status at Ouran, but it had happened and she soon grew thankful of it. As an only child she'd never really come to rely on people her age (in fact she was almost irritated by them) but with the club she had come to know what it was like to have brothers, a relation she almost figured she'd have to live without. And then there was Tamaki.
The thought of brothers had been enough to stun the female, but actually having feelings towards one of them like she did with Tamaki was, well…Unbelievable. In the beginning, she had purely denied that she was capable of feeling anything but annoyance towards the blonde and had almost managed to convince herself that it was true until she realized she was just kidding herself. Thought it had been a shock when Tamaki had announced he felt the same towards her, and there was no doubt in the female's mind that he still did. She just couldn't say the same about herself.
She sighed, a heavy sigh that went unnoticed by the rest of the group currently scattered around the beach observing anything from the seashells to the palm trees. Looking out into the ocean, Haruhi's mind flashed back to the time at Okinawa when she had been thrown into the ocean trying to defend a group of girls from a small gang of punks. Tamaki had saved her then, though she had told them she was perfectly capable of swimming out on her own, and now she found a kind of irony in the fact that she now seemed to be drowning in questions with no answers. Then there was that boredom nipping at her heels. When had it come around? Haruhi thought it had to be around her first work incident; no…She was sure of it. It had been after that that Tamaki had devoted himself to being at her side almost 24/7 and, while it was a sweet and somewhat creepy motion (but nonetheless a Tamaki motion) she had soon found out that their relationship was almost a rut.
It was the same thing, day in and day out. Now Haruhi wasn't the kind of person who necessarily went looking for trouble (granted it always had a knack of finding her) but there was something about the loop of her relationship that almost made her want to take up bungee jumping, if only for something a little different.
"Haruhi!" Like so many times before, Tamaki's voice dragged the female back down to earth with a resounding thud. "Come look at this!" The blonde was waving his arms frantically and the female could faintly see him holding something in shades of pinks and grays.
She didn't move right away, in fact there was a thought clawing at the back of her mind that sounded something like 'why should I?' Realizing her hesitation was currently plastered to her face, Haruhi quickly twisted it to a smile and walked to join the blonde, hoping that her awkward reaction hadn't been too noticeable.
But it had by the ever-watchful Hitachiin twins. A simple shared glance by the brothers told the other something was wrong with their female companion while the other simply restated that nothing could be done and the issue was best left forgotten. Hikaru only wished it was that easy, but something was nagging him about what Kaoru had said. He had had a chance, he knew, but wasn't there that saying…
Didn't people get second chances?
Sooooooo. There you go, after months and weeks and days and hours XD But its here now and that's all that matters! Sorry if this chapter seems a bit...suckish, I wrote it in so many sections I was losing my train of thought alot XD Please R&R!