Like I said in the last chapter, I would really appreciate reviews! Even the smallest one give me enthusiasm to keep writing! Please and thank you! :)
Water slowly dripped onto the hard floor. The club room was dead silent, guests and hosts alike. Hikaru and Lilith stood at each other's side, their clothes clinging to them. The silence was broken by a small snicker. The two looked over at Kaoru, seeing that he was doing all he could to stop himself from rolling on the floor laughing. Haruhi stood up from her seat and walked away from her guests. She made her way over to Lilith and led her across the still room. Hikaru made his way over to his brother, irritated by his amusement. Soon enough, everyone was back to what they were doing and chatter once again filled the room. Haruhi went back over to her guests after showing Lilith where she can change her clothes.
"Who is that girl Kaoru? Why is she always with you two?" one of his guests questioned, unsure of whether or not to be jealous.
"She's..." he stalled so that he could scan the room. When he didn't see Renge he answered, "Lilith, she's our cousin."
"Oh."
Lilith soon left the changing room wearing jeans and a light blue t-shirt. What stood out for her though were her burning cheekbones. Hikaru, who was waiting outside of the room so that he could change clothes, took note of the redness instantly. He easily swiped the piece of paper out of her hand. This time, she didn't bother fighting him for it. She simply walked over to Honey and Mori's part of the club and sat down on the available seat next to Honey. She didn't pay any attention to the group, she just wanted a distraction from the distraction. She leaned back against the plush sofa and looked up at the decorative ceiling. With her mind going blank, she found her heavy eyelids closing.
Hikaru left the dressing room wearing a spare uniform. Amused, he looked over at Lilith, wanting to taunt her about the letter. A frowned played on his lips when he saw her unconscious form. He made his way back over to his brother and sat next to him. Nonchalantly, he handed the letter to him.
Kaoru took it and read the letter to himself, "Lilith, you are as beautiful as the flower that resembles your name. Since you first entered the class, even when hiding your appearance, you stood out to me. Now that you are showing who you really are, you're breathtaking. If you're willing to give me a chance, I would like to go on a date with you Sunday. Please let me know your answer in class tomorrow. Masaru."
"It's overkill if you ask me," Hikaru said.
"Either way, he seems pretty serious," Kaoru responded.
The two looked over at the resting Lilith, deciding themselves what would be best for her.
Lilith woke up when extra weight fell onto her chest. She opened her eyes and looked up seeing a panting Sapphire. Not questioning why she was on her chest, she petted her. In turn, she barked and wagged her tail happily. Shadows soon casted over her. She looked up seeing the twins. Still not fully awake yet, she just stared at them. Keeping their same blank expressions, they pinched her cheeks. She stopped petting Sapphire so that she could grab their wrists. Without realizing, she fell right into their trap. Before she knew it, Kaoru had a firm grasp on her wrists and Hikaru hands were on her waist.
"Gyah!" she shrieked, squirming under his fingers.
The twins were grinning ear to ear, watching the ticklish girl. Sapphire had trouble staying on her owner and so she jumped off. Even with the weight off her, Lilith still couldn't free at this point. She couldn't help but laugh. Soon enough, her face became beet red. After enough squirming, she fell off the couch. From the sudden tug, Kaoru couldn't keep hold on her wrists. She pouted and wrapped her arms tightly around her waist.
"Evil..." she muttered, catching her breath.
"Payback for making me carry you," Hikaru told her.
"Carry me?"
"You fell asleep at the club, remember?" Kaoru questioned.
"I think so..." she whispered.
"No matter what anyone tried, you wouldn't wake up."
"Really?"
"Really. I had to carry you on my back because you wouldn't wake up," Hikaru muttered.
"Huh..."
"What?"
"Nothing, just strange," she said, shaking her head.
"Strange?" Kaoru questioned.
She smiled and put her index finger to her lips saying, "secret." The twins looked at each other for a moment before they both attacked her with tickles, knocking her onto her back. "Okay okay okay!"
"Well?" the twins asked in unison.
She looked directly up at the ceiling, unable to look either one in the eyes while saying this. "Whenever I trust someone enough my guard completely vanishes, especially when I'm sleeping. When my subconscious doesn't feel any form of a threat I stay asleep."
They sat her up and then rested their head on hers saying, "we love you too!"
A blush appeared on her cheekbones and Kaoru said, "that reminds me, what do you want to do about Masaru Lilith? He seems pretty serious about you."
She sighed and then said, "I don't know... I'm not exactly thrilled about the idea."
"According to Kyoya-sempai he's not a bad guy," Hikaru stated.
"Doesn't change the fact that I don't want to be alone with someone I don't know..."
"Have you never gone out before?"
"No..." she whispered, shaking her head slowly.
"Then this will be good for you Lilith, you need to see that the world around you isn't as scary as you think it is," Kaoru soothingly told her.
"Can you guys at least stalk me? I don't want to be alone..."
"I'm sorry but I can't. I promised Mother that I would help her with a show tomorrow. What about you Hikaru?"
Hikaru ran his fingers through his hair saying, "I guess I can go."
"Really?" she questioned him happily. He nodded and she held him tightly whispering, "thank you..."
Right away he began to tickle her, making her jump away. When she was at a safe distance, she stuck her tongue out at him. The two just laughed at her. She let out a sigh and stood up, brushing herself off. Once she was standing, she looked around. She realized she was back in the entertainment room. Right when it was realized, Hikaru challenged her to a rematch. She turned him down however. Claiming that she wanted to catch up on her studies, she left the room. The twins simply shrugged and began playing their own game.
Hours passed and the twins haven't seen a sign of Lilith since she left to study. Curiously, they looked around for her. It was getting pretty late and so they wanted to check up on her before going to bed. After a couple minutes of searching around, they ended up at the room they had lent her. The door was left ajar. The two popped their heads into the room. Most everything looked undisturbed. The ceiling light was shining it's glow on everything, including the curled up Lilith. She was sitting at the head of the bed, holding her legs against her tightly. In her right hand she clutched onto a piece of paper. She looked at them alarmed when she heard them enter the room. They both sat at the end of the bed, next to each other. Kaoru was the closer to her. Before they questioned her, she handed them the paper with a shaking hand. Kaoru took it and put it in front of him so that Hikaru could also see.
Kaoru read aloud softly, "don't think you can hide from me for long Lily."
At the bottom of the note was a picture just from the previous day when Lilith explained her past to the club. Hikaru and Kaoru looked at her concerned. She was as pale as a ghost and shaking like a leaf. Her eyes had a red tint to them. She reached over and grasped onto Kaoru's sleeve.
"You're all on his radar now..."she barely whispered. "I'm so sorry..."
"Come on," Kaoru said as he stood up. She looked up at him confused and he continued, "you're sleeping with us tonight."
"What? Why?"
"There's no way you'll be able to sleep when you're all alone."
"Don't worry, we won't bite... tonight," Hikaru added.
The tiniest smile appeared on her face. She appreciated him trying to cheer her up. The other two smiled and they helped her up. They left the guest room and entered the twins'. For now, the two didn't want to make her feel uncomfortable and so they kept their clothing articles on. Sapphire ran into the room just before Hikaru shut the door. Before she knew it, she was under the covers with the mirror imaged boys. She was on her back, staring up at the ceiling. Kaoru was to her left and Hikaru to her right as usual. Sapphire was lying down at the end of the bed. The two were on their sides facing her. Kaoru's left arm was draped over her shoulders and Hikaru's right arm was around her waist. They were talking to each other just above her head. She tuned out their light chatter. Even though she slept earlier, she found their voices oddly soothing. She fell asleep in a matter of moments.
The next day didn't play out too differently than the previous. Tamaki picked up Lilith in the morning. She was glad by that; she didn't know how much more teasing from the twins she could take in the morning. Right when she entered the classroom, it became obvious to her who Masaru was. He was eyeing her intently with his dark eyes. She, unwillingly, agreed to meet up with him the next day. After that was done, the rest of the day went by as normal as normal could be. That evening, the twins helped her pick out clothes for her date. When that was completed, they played videogames the rest of the night. The three ended up, once again, falling asleep on the couch.
Sunday morning, Lilith woke up to something vibrating in her pocket. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around. In looking up, she saw Hikaru and Kaoru leaning against each other sleeping. She couldn't help but smile. It was refreshing to her seeing family members actually caring for each other. She looked away from them and took notice to her warm pillow. She sat straight up when finally realizing she was sleeping on Hikaru's lap. She could just feel her face burning. She closed her eyes tightly and took in a couple deep breaths. Once she felt better, she very gently shook Hikaru. He groaned lightly and hit her hand away. Her eyebrow twitched in annoyance and she pinched his nose. In only a couple moments, he woke up with a gasp. She let his nose free and just watched him for a moment. He looked at her annoyed, which just made her smile. He reached over and tickled her. A high-pitched squeak left her as she jumped away. He simply laughed at her reaction.
Pouting lightly, she told him, "you promised you'd follow..."
He sighed and ruffled his hair, "that's today huh?" She nodded and he replied, "you should change your clothes then."
"Okay," she whispered, standing up and shortly leaving the room.
"So much for watching from the sidelines," Kaoru spoke up. Hikaru nodded and his brother continued, "keep an eye on her. She could break any moment now."
"Yeah yeah... I got it."
He smiled and handed him a DS, "here, this should help pass the time."
"Thanks."
Soon after he took it, Lilith reentered the room. She was wearing a pair of jeans and a red blouse. She refused to wear makeup or do anything special with her hair. She didn't want to make this dating a frequent occurrence, especially when it's with men she doesn't know. After a push on the back by his other half, Hikaru stood up. Kaoru wished the two luck just before they left the room. Not a word was exchanged between Lilith and Hikaru and they made their way to the entrance. Neither were in their best moods since they were both not happy with what was about to happen. Right when they reached the family car, she received a text from Masaru. He simply told her that he was waiting for her to arrive. She groaned in annoyance and the two slid inside the vehicle. Once they were seated, she rested her forehead on Hikaru's shoulder.
"I shouldn't have agreed..." she mumbled.
"You can still call it off," he responded.
"Then he'll harass me at school... Man, I'd rather go out with Mori-sempai and the idea of that freaks me out..."
He laughed and ruffled her hair. She looked up at him, still pouty. He rested his hand on her head just as the car stopped. Another sigh escaped her lips as she stepped outside. Hikaru watched her carefully as she met up with their classmate. She was incredibly skittish. Masaru, on the other hand, seemed ecstatic and was trying to make her feel more at ease. He dressed as causal as she did, wearing dark jeans and a black t-shirt. The two began to walk off and Hikaru got out of the car. He followed them at a safe distance. His eyes were locked more on Masaru than Lilith. He knows little to nothing about him. He does know that when Masaru attempted to make physical contact with her, a twinge of anger fills him. The emotion never lasted long though since she always brushed him off. The two entered a restaurant, leaving Hikaru sitting on the bench just outside of it. Now being bored out of his mind, he called Kaoru.
"How's it going?" Kaoru answered.
"Boring..." he answered.
"How are the two getting along?"
"She's been freaking out since she left the car and he seems to just ignore that."
"He might just be trying to make her feel more comfortable."
"Not working then."
"Hey, I got to go. Don't die of boredom."
"I'll try," he mumbled, ending the call.
He was about to put his phone in his pocket but he noticed he got a text. He opened it seeing that it was from Lilith.
'Is it Monday yet?'
'If only.'
Lilith looked at the phone seeing the returned message. She sighed and put her phone back into her pocket. Right after, Masaru returned to the table from the restroom. He went back to ranting about things she didn't really care to listen about. She tuned out his voice to the best of her ability since he sat back down. Instead, she studied his features. He was pretty pale, obviously didn't go outside too often. Even so, he did have some defined muscles. His black hair just barely missed reaching shoulders. Something was really bothering her though. When she met the host club, it did not take her long at all to realize that even though they annoyed her in the beginning, they were not harmful. Around Masaru, she couldn't help feeling on edge. There was something in his dark eyes that she did not like.
"Lilith?" he questioned in his deep voice.
"Huh?" she replied, returning to the world.
"Lost you for a minute there."
"Guess so."
He smiled and asked, "do you want to go see a movie?"
"Oh, sure."
"Awesome! A new one came out recently but I haven't had the chance to see it yet. It's supposed to be really good."
She nodded and then simply tuned him out again. The rest of the ramen meal went by fast enough. When they finished, they left the restaurant. Before walking too far away, Lilith gave a side glance back at the watchful Hikaru. He nodded at her and she gave him the tiniest smile. She quickly looked forward again, before Masaru noticed anything. They walked down a partially busy path. A few cars passed by them. The sun was still high in the sky, making her dread that there was still a lot of time in the day. After walking down a couple blocks, they reached the theater. Masaru paid for their tickets and they went inside. They didn't bother with snacks since they just ate.
"Hey, I need to use the restroom. I'll meet you in the theater okay?" she asked.
"Okay, I'll see you in there then," he answered with a nod.
She made her way to the bathroom and once again let out a sigh. She looked at herself in one of many mirrors, seeing that she herself looked pale. Rubbing her face, she tried to figure out how much more she could take. She realized she needed help with the decision and so she took her phone out.
'Is he still out there?' she texted Hikaru.
'No,' he messaged back.
She left the bathroom and quickly found him sitting at a table in the back corner of the theater. She made her way over to him and sat down at the available seat. After that she just let her head rest on the cool table.
"I can't take this anymore..." she whined softly.
"Then just tell him you have to leave and we can get the hell out of here," he said.
"I think I'll do just that," she said raising her head.
"I'll wait at the door."
She nodded and walked away. Hikaru stood and stretched a bit. He smiled just a bit, relieved that his stalking duty was over. He didn't want to spend his entire day off just doing this. When he finished stretching, he walked over to the door. Suddenly, his forearm was grabbed and he was pulled outside. Greatly confused, he looked in front of him seeing a panicked Lilith. She kept pulling at his arm and he figured out what she wanted. The two began to run as fast as they could. He couldn't see her face to make a full diagnosis, but from her pale skin, shaking hands, and a grasp so tight that her nails were about to break his skin, something horrible just happened. When she just couldn't run anymore, she turned the corner into a dark alley. Still clinging to him, she slipped down to her knees. He sat down next to her and made her look at him. Her face was tearstained and her eyes kept shifting.
"What happened?" he asked.
"He... He... Masa..." she stumbled over her words.
"What about Masaru?"
"He works for my dad..."
"What..?"
She let go of his arm so that she could wrap her arms tightly around his waist. Then, she buried her face in his chest. He held onto her with his right arm, feeling a strong urge to protect her. With his left, he took his phone out.
"Kaoru!" Hikaru exclaimed.
"What is it Hikaru?" asked confused.
"We need help, Masaru was hired by her father. Send a car our way."
"Okay," he agreed, hanging up right after.
"Damnit..." he cursed, putting his phone back in his pocket.
"I'm sorry..." she whispered, tightening his grasp on him.
He wrapped his other arm around her shoulders and rested his chin on her head. He wasn't mad at her but he couldn't get his jaw to move to say so. He was simply furious with himself that he couldn't tell that Masaru was a traitor. A car screeched outside the alley and Hikaru quickly stood up, helping Lilith do the same. They made their way to it and he sat inside. She couldn't quite make it however. He looked over in horror seeing Lilith on her knees with Masaru at her side. He pulled out the pocket knife he stuck her in the side with and ran down the alley, vanishing.
"Lilith!" Hikaru cried out.
She didn't give him any response. She just sat on her knees, motionless as blood pooled around her. He pulled her into the car and shut the door behind her. The driver sped off. Conscious to the world again, she looked up at the concerned boy. She noticed that his eyes were watering the slightest bit and she couldn't help but smile. The smile was soon to fade though when the darkness engulfed her.
