Disclaimer: I do not own "Ouran High School Host Club" or any of the characters in this wonderful manga/anime in any way.

Shelter in the Storm

Previously in chapter forty: The day after Tamaki and Kyoya graduated, Kimiko also graduated from college. Haruhi was, of course, invited. Kimiko admitted then that her time with Haruhi during her recovery had been the turning point in her own recovery from the loss of her family. She considered Haruhi as close as family. To emphasis the point, Haruhi's third year of High School was accented by the fact that she had been asked to take on the task of "Maid of Honor" for Kimiko's wedding. The wedding took place three months before Haruhi's graduation.

Chapter Forty One

It was about a week before graduation for Haruhi, Kaoru, and Hikaru, when they had the last meeting of the Ouran High School Host Club. There would be no one left to carry on, so this was the last event ever. It was a bittersweet event, with tons of food and dancing. Haruhi's dress was, of course, a never before seen Hitachiin design made especially for Haruhi. It was explained to the guests why Haruhi had misled everyone, to which they received a surprising reaction. The guests, instead of reacting badly, they were quite understanding. Of course, some felt that Kyoya had overstepped his bounds by adding to her debt over and over again. But for the most part, the ladies were more than willing to accept Haruhi as a girl, and even as a friend. They did not, however, indicate that Haruhi was in fact dating one of their own, for fear of the affect it might have had on the guests.

It was nearing time for the guests to leave and the rest of the club to clean up when there was a sudden flash in the windows. Haruhi instantly dropped the tea set that she had been carrying to the kitchen, shattering the fine porcelain all over the floor. As she bent down to pick up the pieces, she knew she was in trouble. Thunder rang out throughout the building. Try as she might, Haruhi could not steel her nerves enough to keep a mask in front of the guests. She dropped everything and ran as fast as her legs would carry her to the supply closet.

Haruhi's guests were escorted out as were the twins' guests. The other hosts still had guests that they were trying as politely as they could to get to leave. Kaoru was the first to make it into the supply closet to try comforting Haruhi. Nothing he said or did could calm her nerves, even after Hikaru joined them. Even the trick of wrapping her in a blanket and putting headphones on her did not help this time. With every clap of thunder, she shook harder and more tears streamed down her face.

Tamaki was the next host to finally get rid of his guests, so he also tried to sooth Haruhi's rattled nerves to no avail. Not that he had ever really been able to comfort her, if the truth were to be told. Even back when they both thought that they might be in love with one another, Tamaki's antics and hyper behavior had always upset Haruhi even more that what ever was originally causing her problems. His attempts to calm her only ended up with her more frazzled than she had started out.

Kyoya dismissed the other men from the supply closet and attempted to calm Haruhi as well. He was able to help some, in that he had calmed her down to the point that she was no longer hyperventilating. Still, she was visibly shaken, and couldn't form complete sentences. She just wanted to be somewhere away from the lightning and thunder. Kyoya walked out of the closet to find Huni-senpai desperately trying to get the one last girl hanging on Takeshi's arm to leave. Kyoya pulled him aside and suggested that he try to help Haruhi, but Kyoya's words fell on deaf ears. "I am not the one that needs to be in there with her. If you aren't able to calm her down, then the only one who will be is Takeshi."

Kyoya walked over to the last remaining girl and asked her to leave. When she protested, Kyoya did something that the rest of the club members never thought that they would see. He took the young girl by the arm and forcefully escorted her to the door, "Miss, it was a pleasure to keep you company all this time, but we are officially closed. There will be no more host club. We still have to clean up, remove all of our belongings that do not belong to the school, and get home before the storm hits. So please leave. Thank you for your patronage." When the girl stood in the doorway not leaving, Kyoya raised his voice and threw the girl out. "Leave now! We're closed. And more importantly, we have a family member in crisis. So get the hell out of here now!" Kyoya's mask had not only slipped, but completely shattered. None of the other members had ever seen him look as upset as he looked at that moment. As he locked the doors, he turned to his senpai and in an equally demanding tone said, "Get in there now. Haruhi needs you. None of us will do."

Takeshi had already been making his way towards the supply closet before Kyoya spoke. He picked up the cowering girl and held her in his arms as he sat down. He whispered into her hair as he held her close to his chest. His heartbeat was calming as it thundered in her ear, drowning out the sound of the thunder outside. Her panic attack left her feeling drained of all energy, so she was quickly lulled into sleep in Takeshi's arms. Not wanting to wake her before the storm ended, he continued to hold her as she slept.

Kyoya took a little comfort in the fact that he had been of more help to his friend than the other three had. It wasn't much of a consolation, but he knew at least he had helped his friend somehow. He cleared the table that his senpais had been sitting at, and finished cleaning the room as the others left. Even though he knew that Haruhi would be ok and that they would lock up when they left, he still stayed. He couldn't do much for her, but he would at least stay until he knew that she was ok, for his own peace of mind.

Occasionally, Kyoya would peek into the closet to see how she was doing and give Mori-senpai the current weather report. He tried to send Huni-senpai home, assuring him that he would stay until Mori-senpai and Haruhi were ready to go. He would give them a ride home.

"Kyo-chan, you know that she is in good hands, right?"

"I wouldn't leave things like they are if I didn't think so. He may have won her heart, but I still love her. Even if she never chose me, ever, it doesn't matter. As long as she's happy, then things are ok. But, between you and me, if he ever hurts her, you might as well plan on attending my funeral. Mori-senpai could easily kill me, but I will step up for her if he ever does anything to hurt Haruhi." Kyoya looked at the young man in front of him and smiled a wistful smile. "It's funny, my father was as devastated by the news that Haruhi was taken as I was. It's been almost two years, and he still can't find anyone that he wants me to marry. Not that anyone can compare to her."

"I know, Kyo-chan. I know. I'll never tell Takeshi this, but I am envious. I wish that I had the courage to tell her how I felt. She's affected everyone in the club, hasn't she? I guess I am glad that if she had to fall for any of us, at least it wasn't Tama-chan or the twins. She's got a good head on her shoulders, and an even more amazing heart. I have been lucky to know her for the last three years."

"Me too. But I never knew that you had feelings for her as well."

"Uhn, but I could tell that Takeshi did too, so I never said anything. He may be my cousin, but he is also my best friend. He's take care of me for as long as I can remember. He deserves to be happy. They both deserve it."

"True. Well, senpai, it looks like the storm is ending. I haven't seen lightning in a few minutes. Will I see you at the graduation ceremony next week?"

"Of course! We can't let Haru-chan, Kao-chan, and Hika-chan graduate without being there, can we? Take care, and I will see you then. I am going to let Takeshi know that I have called for the car, and that it should be ok to leave now." He turned to go into the supply closet to let the two know what was going on.

"Senpai, Thank you."

"For what?"

"For doing the same thing that I have been trying to do for a while now… sacrificing your happiness for Haruhi's."

"Silly. How could we not. She really turned our little worlds upside down, didn't she? None of us can say that she didn't affect us a great deal."

"I'm going now. Remember to lock up, and I will see you next week." Kyoya turned and left before he lost what little composure that he had regained after throwing the girl out of the room. His ride home was an unusually silent one. He wasn't typing on his laptop, nor was he checking his phone internet access for data. Kyoya silently cried. She had done it again. No one else could make his lose his composure. Only the poor commoner female scholarship student that had spent the last three years posing as a boy could do that to him. If not her directly, then the only other time he lost his composure was about her. But what can you do? She was his friend in the end. That's all that mattered to him anymore. She had truly changed his world, and he was thankful.