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The Haninozuka residence was a mirror reflection of classical Japan, with its main building, a three-tier Pagoda surrounded by a peaceful brook, and a small dirt path that led to three dodos; one for the patriarch, one for his second born Chica, and one for his prodigal firstborn, Hunny. The petite blond was practicing ninjutsu in his dojo when he received a cell phone call from an old friend at high school.
"Moshi-Moshi?"
"Hunny-Senpai? It's Haruhi."
"Hi, Haru-chan! What's up?"
Her voice sounded a bit somber. "Is Hikaru there? I need to speak to him."
The little Lolita boy dropped his own pleasant demeanor and frowned, "Ooh... You'd better come over, he's not doing too well."
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The tomboyish girl didn't know what to expect when she came to the (house), so when Hunny and Mori welcomed her in and led her to Hikaru's guest room, she was in for a surprise. There he was, still in his school uniform and blazer, curled up in the fetal position on his cot, holding Usa-Chan tightly to his chest as though his life depended on it. His face was frozen with fear; eyes closed shut with tears streaming down from them, and his teeth were grit so tightly it seemed he could break through them. His breathing was soft, but rampant. He was the spitting image of trauma.
"Hikaru," she breathed softly. Her heart went out to him before her body did, moving slowly and quietly toward him as to not startle him. As her face loomed over his, her shadow was enough to alert him of a presence.
He snapped his eyes open and glanced upward. "Ha-Haruhi?" His voice was scratched from sobbing nonstop for hours.
She placed her right hand on his damp brown hair; he was running a cold sweat. "It's okay, Hikaru..."
"...He's dead, isn't he? ...I heard a snap when he fell..."
The girl shook her head and have him a small smile. "He's okay, Hikaru; just a re-broken nose and a minor concussion."
"Oh," he gasped loudly. "Thank God... I thought I lost him."
Then the girl was compelled to ask the one question that burned in her mind ever since the incident took place: "Why did you run, Hikaru? He needed you, and you just took off."
He turned his head from hers in shame. "I panicked... I thought you were gonna blame me for it and hate me forever."
"I know you, Hikaru- we all do. We would never believe for a minute that you'd throw your own brother down a flight of stairs."
His golden eyes came back to her. But he remained silent, as though awestruck by her words.
"He's been asking for you."
"He has? ...I'm surprised. I thought he was still angry with me."
The girl shook her head, smiling again. "You two. What am I gonna do with you?" When he gave her a look of confusion, she elaborated: "You both love each other so much, and yet you expect the worst from each other. I always knew you guys had trust issues, but I didn't think it was this bad."
He shifted his body till he was lying on his back. He cupped his hands together and his eyes softened. He was now looking more like the old Hikaru, the one Haruhi befriended. "It's because of how I reacted when he kissed you," he spoke in a much calmer voice. "For as long as we could remember, Kaoru and I never betrayed each other. It was him and me versus the world... And then that happened, and for the first time in my whole life, I felt betrayed... It all went downhill from there."
Haruhi sighed. "I made it as clear as I could to you guys: I never want to come between you two."
"I know, Haruhi. I know you don't..." As he gazed up into her chocolate brown eyes, a faint warmth fell between them. It was as though the world fell still, and it was just the two of them. What he said next would touch her in a way she would never expect, as his voice was now the sincerest it had ever been: "But I just can't ignore how I feel about you, Haruhi. You're the reason why I wake up in the morning with a smile on my face. You're the one person in the whole world, other than Kaoru, who matters to me. I'm sure Kaoru loves you too, in his own way, but I don't believe he feels for you the way I do."
He took her hand into his, catching her off guard and yet she didn't resist. A faint blush crossed her face. "I know I'm not perfect- hell I'm barely tolerable most days- but if you give me a chance, I can make you the happiest woman alive. ...I love you, Haruhi Fujioka."
The girl lost her breath. Her knees tingled with weakness for a moment, as she placed her left hand over her bottom lip as though she knew it was quivering. These twin Devils made her first year at Ouran a living hell, and yet this one seemed so different now, almost angelic. The longer she gazed into his sparkling golden eyes, the harder it was for her to look away. They were hypnotizing. Elegant. Warm.
...Vulnerable.
Yes, that's what struck her about him: Hikaru Hitachiin was, in that moment, vulnerable. Perhaps for the first time in his life. Surely, this was a good sign, a sign of maturity. This was not the Hikaru she was introduced to one year earlier, this was a new Hikaru. And she liked him.
No. She loved him.
But of course, she was too stubborn and fearful to say it out loud, so instead she surprised him with a snide remark: "I dunno, Hikaru. Kaoru's a really good kisser." It seemed the twins' wily ways were finally starting to rub off on her.
To that he have a her a smirk, as a spark of mischief returned to his cat-like eyes. "Come'ere, Lemmie show you how it's done."
Before she could catch her breath, his hands gently seized her ears, and pulled her in. Their lips touched softly for a moment, then he pulled her even closer, allowing their mouths to entwine and caress each other, the way lovers in the movies do. She wasn't sure how long the kiss lasted, but when she pulled back, she took a deep breath as though she had just surfaced from deep water. Her head was swimming.
Hikaru leaned forward as though to kiss her again, but to her surprise his face tilted toward the sliding door behind her. "How long were you two standing there?"
Haruhi turned to see that Hunny and Mori were peeking through the door, Hunny with a cell phone in hand. "Long enough to send this picture over to Kyoya-chan's email account."
"WHAT?" roared a beet-red Haruhi, fangs gnashing in her mouth. "YOU GUYS GRADUATED, HOW ARE YOU STILL ON HIS PAYROLL?"
"Once a club member," shrugged Hunny.
"Always a club member," added Mori.
AS the girl gave chase with her fangs gnashing at the cousins, Hikaru remained lying on his back contently. He then looked down to the pink plush bunny he had previously snuggling. Its beady eyes gazed at his. "Well, that leaves just one more loose end to tie."
He made Usa-Chan nod in agreement.
..
..
After all of his other visitors left the infirmary, Kaoru drifted off to sleep. It was a dreamless sleep, and not a very long one at that; however, his eyes would soon open to a most pleasant surprise.
"Hika," he peeped softly and sweetly.
The Bernstein whose face matched his looked down on him with a big smile. "Hey, Kao."
He placed a hand on the redhead's cranium, which made him wince in pain. "Ow! Concussion!"
"Gah! Sorry, I'm so sorry," gasped Hikaru as he flapped his hands frantically. Then he paused to take a deep breath and say, "I'm so sorry about all of this."
Kaoru blinked. "It wasn't your fault, Hika. I was dumb enough to slip-"
"I'm not just talking about the fall, Kaoru. I'm talking about this whole stupid rivalry between us. I'm sorry I punched you, sorry I split our bed, sorry I made you think I was getting rid of you..."
"Stop. This is all my fault. I know how you feel about Haruhi, and I got jealous... And not just jealous of you, but her too."
"Come again?"
"I thought I was gonna lose you both if you two got together... I know, I'm crazy."
Hikaru tilted his head like a confused puppy, but the look on his eyes showed both pity and understanding. "I don't blame you for feeling that way. We're both pretty screwed up, aren't we?"
"And all because we were hurt by that one person we never should have trusted to begin with."
"We've gotten a little better since then... But maybe we should both try harder."
"With trusting people?"
"And each other."
"I agree."
There eyes rested on each other, their hearts slowing to a much more peaceful pace.
"...hey, Kao?"
"What?"
"You don't really think my hair looks ugly, do you?"
The redhead chuckled softly. "I can get used to it."
"Haruhi says it's really becoming."
"Oh? Are you two...?"
"Well, kind of. I mean, I think she likes me in that way."
The redhead have a genuine smile. "I'm happy for you, Hika. I mean that."
"D'aww, come'ere," cooed the brunette as he tried to wrap his arms around the redhead's shoulders. He then leaned in to nuzzle his head when-
"Augh! Concussion!"
"Sorry!" gasped the elder twin as he pulled back fearfully. "I'm really sorry... Can I at least...?"
As though he could read his brother's mind, Kaoru smiled with a nod. "You may."
Hikaru very gingerly leaned in and kissed his twin firmly on the forehead. This time, the redhead barely flinched.
"So," peeped the brunette, "are we good?"
Kaoru gave an assuring nod. "We're more than good."
They smiled at each other. No more words, just smiles. It was all they needed to assure themselves that their fued was finally over.
..
..
Spring came and went, and in the blink of an eye, it was summer.
Haruhi no longer minded being the center of attention as far as Hikaru was concerned. She had warmed up to both his antics at the club and his random acts of admiration toward her. He still sent flowers and chocolates to her apartment on occasion, much to her father's annoyance, but eventually even Ranka warmed up to the brunette Hitachiin. Much to his daughter's relief.
And yes, Hikaru kept his hair dyed dark, as it was the one thing during his fallout with Kaoru that he was proud of. It was the one thing that kept his and his brother's likeness apart; at long last, he was an individual. But of course, this would come at a small price at the club: no longer would he and his twin play the "Which One Is Hikaru?" game, as his hair was now a dead giveaway. Although it was sad at first, for the twins and their fans alike, it was a sacrifice worth making as it gave him room to pull off more silly pranks on the guests and his fellow hosts. Sure, he vowed to Haruhi that he would mature, but old habits as they say die hard.
No longer did Kaoru Hitachiin have pumpkins or magic clock towers on the brain. Knowing that he was going to stay in touch with the former Hosts and stay close with his brother always, he had achieved his happily ever after. All there was to wait for now was the day when his brother would propose to the woman he loved, and being called upon to be his best man. He reset his fantasy clock to the hour.
But first, they had one more bittersweet hurdle to cross: Tamaki and Kyoya's graduation.
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The event was a short but sweet one: The graduating class arrived in white suits with periwinkle blue roses and ties, to represent the school colors. As they took the main stage to receive their diplomas and honors, they were observed by family and friends alike in what could possibly have been the largest ensemble in the school's history. So big was the event, that it could not be held indoors; instead, the ceremony was in the school garden grounds.
Funny enough, it was on these very grounds where Haruhi's heart was first contested for; here, Hikaru professed his love, which was turned down at the time. But now here the trio sat together, Haruhi in between the Hitachiin brothers- the brunette on her right, the redhead t her left- all watching as their elders proudly received their honors. The three of them held hands; they knew it would be their time on that podium the following year. They entered this school together, they would leave together. It was as though their stars were aligned.
They were the first to rise from their seats and applaud the graduating class, with Tamaki and Kyoya smiling and waving in reply.
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After the ceremony, everyone was invited to an outside gala set in the back of Tamaki's mansion- and it's not as though one could describe it as a backyard, for it was far too massive for that. Pillars coated with white and periwinkle lace walled in the event, and everyone had assigned tables that surrounded a large rounded floor that would be the dancing area. Not far from that was a stage, set for a full orchestra. The party was already in full swing, when...
"Red and white is a more appropriate color theme," said Kaoru matter of factly, as he, Hikaru and Haruhi sat at their designated table. The three of them were dressed to the nines; even Haruhi was in a tuxedo, as her fellow classmates from Ouran were present and they still believed she was a he.
"But it's so boring," groaned his brunette twin. "I want my wedding to really stand out, with really bright colors like yellow and lime green. And purple! And orange!"
"Those colors clash though, you don't wanna make your guests sick."
"Ugh," groaned the girl in men's clothing. "We're not even graduates yet, and you guys are making wedding plans?"
Her boyfriend gave her a face. "This is important, Haruhi. Don't you want our special day to be memorable?"
Though wedding bells weren't ringing in her head, she humored the energetic twins with a chuckle. "Does everything have to be over the top with you two?"
They both exchanged a similar glare. "You need to ask?"
She rolled her eyes.
Just then, the music began to kick into a faster pace. It made Hikaru's feet tap. Feeling jittery all over, he jumped to his feet and extended his hand to Haruhi. "Care to dance?"
She placed her hand in his. "I'd like that."
Kaoru watched as his brother and future sister-in-law took to the dance floor with other couples. As the two of them twirled, their figures disappeared into the crowd, as now dozens of couples filled the dancefloor. But he knew they were still there. The fear he once had of losing them forever was gone now. He rested his chin in the palm of his hand and sighed contently.
Just then, a familiar feminine hand slammed onto his table, snapping him out of his dream-like state. "Wake up, sleepy head!" chimed Renge, dressed in a gold dress fit for a prom. "I didn't get dolled up in this get-up for nothing."
She was inviting him to dance with her, it seemed. To this, Kaoru smiled and chuckled. "I hear ya." He rose to his feet and escorted her to the dancefloor.
And so it was that the three friends, along with the others they've made over the last two years, danced their hearts out at the best gala ever. And while Kaoru and Renge merely danced for the fun of it, it was Hikaru and Haruhi who were the real prince and princess of the ball, their hearts and hands entwined in a way that only a fairy tale couple would be familiar with.
On that day, everyone received their happily ever after.
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THE E-
"WAIT!" screams Tamaki, as he rips through the ending screen. "IT WAS HARUHI ALL THIS TIME? THAT'S WHO THE TWINS WERE FIGHTING OVER?" His eyes turn white as his face scrunches, fire emulating from his fang-covered mouth. "NO! THIS CAN'T BE! IT ISN'T EVEN CANON! SOMEBODY CALL BISCO HATORI! I WANT MY LAWYER! I'LL SUE FOR INFRINGEMENT! I'LL-" He is cut off by the reaffirmed fade to black.
...Well, okay. Almost everyone received their happily ever after.
THE END
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Stay tuned, for a special Bonus Chapter!