Authors Note: I'm so sorry everybody! Oh my gosh I was really trying so hard just to get this chapter out of me but I can't focus unless I have the right music for it, and I could not for the life of me find the song I wanted. (I eventually found my groove in Paperback Writer by the Beatles)
I'm also sorry that a lot of you have problems with torture, if I had known I would have toned it down before I got them to that mean of a level. If you really have trouble stomaching it I've made it so that you can just read what's in the quotes to get you to where Haruhi's in nice safe arms. However I will probably not stop that type of writing style just because it's a big part of the story.
Oh and a bit of a problem. Supporters of this couple usually aren't in it for the innocent cute love like Haruhi and Tamaki, so more intimate scenes or do you all just want to stick to cute fluffy moments? Cause I have no problem with writing emotional scenes like that, but I don't want to offend anyone.
I also ran into another problem, I was wondering what you guys want me to do about it, because I re-discovered my absolute HATE for writing clothing descriptions. I've found that I can do them since I obviously see the dress in my head, but it's just a long paragraph of boring details and no matter what even if I describe it perfectly everyone's going to imagine it differently. So I think I'm just gonna stick to the really basic, vague, imagery of it and let you guys imagine the rest on your own. That cool or do you want me to try and do another method?
Anyways here's the next chapter. Enjoy loves.
(Ps: Izzy loves fan-art. It's scientifically proven she writes better when given pretty shiny drawings. That is all.
PSS: Most of the dialogue from this chapter came from some choice moments in my life so if anything sounds really cheesy it's cause well…it's me and my husband XD What do you expect?)
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"No, no Mr. Ducky! Please wait your turn!" The little girl's voice chimed out happily as she giggled and threw a piece of bread into the pond. The little girl could only laugh as they all dived in after it at the same time, conking heads every so often. The mother duckling swam around gently, not worrying about her children with the girl since she had recognized her as a friend and not an enemy. Ever since that faithful day in the park when she had been saved by that hot headed boy, she had come to the playing field and escaped to the safest part near the pond to feed the ducks.
Of course she had not gone without company.
"Haruhi! You started feeding them without me?!" A whiney voice called out as the boy ran to her side. Haruhi giggled and tossed in another crumb for the ducklings as he pouted and took his seat beside her. Haruhi giggled happily and tore her bread in half before handing the other half to him. He nodded a thank you and took a moment to go and glance at the ducklings. Many days had passed since he had looked down at her, and many days had passed since he had thrown rocks at her.
With her bright smile and carefully chosen words, he had nearly felt the ice built up around his heart melt away.
Now if only he could just let his brother see that in her…
The boy sighed and held out his hand with some bread making the ducks' heads rise. They started over to him but he pulled his hand away, scanning for an unnaturally small creature among them.
"Huh?! Wh-Where's Nacho?!" The boy asked quickly, fear springing in his voice. Haruhi laughed and tilted her head at him cutely as her hair fell over her face.
"He's fine. He's just exploring the rest of the pond" Haruhi whispered. A tight knot in his chest was loosened as he heard that the duckling was ok. For some reason he had grown quite fond of the one that he had named 'Nacho' because of his small exterior and runt like status in the family. It was nostalgic to his own home to say the least.
"He's never traveled around the pond before though…what if he gets's lost and can't find his way back?" The boy whispered, his eyes half closing as worry once again came over him. Since many of the other ducklings fought for the food that they tossed to them, Nacho, being the smallest and weakest, usually never got any, so the boy, being a somewhat kind soul, would hand feed him. Now that Nacho was missing though….
"Here-" Haruhi said kindly as she took his bread and tore off a good helping. "-feed the rest of the ducks and when Nacho comes back you can give him this part k?" She smiled as he slowly nodded and threw some more of the bread into the water. He opened his mouth to complain but Haruhi merely chuckled and ran her hand through his hair quickly. He nearly melted as he closed his eyes, his uptight shoulders slowly sinking as he laughed as well.
"I tried that on my brother yesterday! I'm not as good as you are, but he looked like a kitty being petted, it was pretty funny!" He laughed out.
"Hey, when do I get to meet your brother anyways? You're always talking about him but…" She trailed off and moved her eyes over to him without moving her body as she continued to toss food into the pond. The boy was staring at his reflection sadly making Haruhi too sober up as she threw the food a little farther.
"Sorry…" Haruhi whispered as she put her head on her knees "…it just feels like you're ashamed of having me as a friend."
The boy sighed as he looked away once more only to see a tiny yellow duckling struggling to get over to the shore with its brother's and sisters. Nacho. Using this new distraction, and after feeling a sigh of relief escape him the boy put out his hand, the duck happily chomping up the bread out of his palm.
"It's not that I'm ashamed of you…I'm just…scared…" he whispered softly. Haruhi looked at him and petted his head gently. He smiled and leaned against her hand happily. Why couldn't his mother ever treat him like this when he was sad?
"…we've never had a friend before…maybe…I'll tell him when he'll be able to understand." He whispered gently.
She sighed heavily making him flinch. He didn't want her to be sad. He stared at the girl as she tugged her lips up in a sympathetic smile. How many times did he have to sit next to this hyper child before he could stop laughing at her and laugh with her? So many times she had to sneak past the richer kids just to get here unscathed.
"…sorry…Haruhi…" he whispered sadly.
"…Hehe it's ok! I'll always be there for you!"
It hurt. Everything hurt. Her hand was throbbing out heat as it stung with such a harsh pain Haruhi had to take in deep breaths as the girl stared angrily down at her. Hannah growled as she looked down at Haruhi's hand. It was red and bruised, but no bones were broken. Fortunately for Haruhi Hannah was mean, but she was weak, even though she had thrashed the heel of her shoe on her hand, she had not been able to succeed in breaking her. Haruhi clenched her teeth together as the other sister dug her shoe deeper into her back as Hannah attempted to retaliate herself.
"Those twins are mine! Who do you think you are taking them?!" Hannah asked raising her hand to slap her again. Haruhi did not flinch and stuck her head out, as if daring her to hit her again. Hannah's face turned red as she backhanded her across the cheek, leaving a fresh red mark.
"Ha-ha! Is that all you have? My grandmother hit's harder!" Haruhi yelled happily. It hurt now, but in the end she knew Hikaru and Kaoru would never turn their back on her, and with some luck, Hannah and Haley might be the ones in the most pain. Hannah twitched angrily as Haley tilted her head to the side looking curious as she leaned down and whispered nearly innocently-
"You're grandmother hits people?" Her bright blue eyes showed no sign of hate like Hannah's did, and her dumb expression showed that she obviously wasn't the smartest of the bunch. Haruhi stared, shocked at her. How could this girl act like such a saint when she was causing her such pain?
"...Yea actually. You see she carries around a cane all the time and she randomly hits youngsters on the street…she's kind of mentally ill and what not, but at least she doesn't need to resort to jumping a person to get what she wants" Haruhi whispered with a rebelling smirk. Hannah fumed. Haley laughed slightly and rubbed the back of her head before leaning back up and looking at her older sister.
"Don't worry Hannah; she's got a cane, that's probably why you can't hit as hard as her." Haley chimed out sweetly. Hannah rubbed her temple as she grabbed her sister's shoulder and shoved her so that she was once again focusing on her duty to hold Haruhi down.
"Pft…I still don't see what the twins see in you." Hannah whispered as she looked Haruhi's body over, giving a disgusting scoff as she turned away. Haruhi bit her lip out of anger but calmed as Hannah turned back.
"Small chest. Ugly face. Annoying voice. No sexual attractiveness at all, surely making them love me more than you won't be too hard." Hannah whispered. Haruhi raised a brow, did she really think that insulting her looks was going to make her cry and promise never to see the twins again?
"Your mother's dead is she not little commoner?" Hannah asked cruelly as she giggled to herself and dipped down to Haruhi's level smoothly.
"Don't you think it would just be horrible if somehow her gravesite was raided don't you think?" Hannah asked lowly so that her sister couldn't hear it. Haruhi shook at those words as the image of her mothers grave, empty and burning stuck harshly into her mind.
"D-don't bring her into this you witch…" Haruhi whispered as she shook with fear. Hannah, seeing this weak spot, smiled as she ran her hands through Haruhi's hair before grasping onto the locks and tossing Haruhi's head up to see the water filling in the big brown eyes.
"You're fathers a transvestite too right? You know I heard a lot of people in town talking about burning that damn gay bar to the ground. Oh how horrible would it be if you're father was stuck inside?" Hannah whispered. Haruhi's eyes widened as tears started to form into little pools by her eyes.
"…you've seen death before Haruhi right? Mmm…I can hear your father's screams now as the fire slowly and painfully burns his skin while all you can do is stand outside…watching…crying…we rich can do things that you'd never imagine of little commoner…are you really willing to risk everything for a couple of boys?" Hannah shook her head as she got down to Haruhi's level before pulling her chin up off of the ground, straining her neck muscles. Haruhi took in a gasped breath as Hannah's eyes lit with such disgust it shot through her and into her heart.
"Now listen and listen good you little whore, stay away from the twins!" Hannah screamed. Haruhi twitched at that statement as she shook her head, attempting to break her head away from the wicked woman's grip. She was not going to be controlled and she would not let her think that she had broken her!
"ITS HIKARU AND KAORU!" Haruhi screamed suddenly for the first time since they had started to beat her. Hannah looked behind her and at seeing now men she laughed and scraped the girls chin. Hannah smiled as she laughed softly before digging her nails into Haruhi's cheek.
"The twins won't come no matter how much you scream for them." Hannah whispered cruelly. Haruhi flinched and closed her eyes tightly as she tried to break her hands free.
"THEIR NOT THE TWINS! ITS HIKARU AND KAORU! THEIR NAMES ARE HIKARU AND KAORU!" Haruhi screamed. Hannah blinked and dropped Haruhi's head to the ground as she stared at the girl. She had the nerve to try and correct her? Haruhi panted angrily as she let her head fall to the earth, dirt smudging her cheeks.
"What are you babbling about now?!" She growled out.
"You keep calling them, 'the twins' or 'those two' they have names you know! They're different even though they look the same!" Haruhi yelled out. Not thinking the sadistic girl growled as she kicked the young girl in the head. Haruhi let out a yip as she suddenly started to give into shaky breaths. Hannah gasped as she saw small trickles of blood flow down from Haruhi's now bruised lip. Haruhi moaned and let her head rest down as she gave in. Everything was spinning.
"…what would you know…" Hannah whispered in a scared voice. Haley shook, blood; she hated blood.
"Obviously a lot more than you." A dark voice came out from behind the corner. Hannah gasped as she looked over at the pond where an orange haired man stood, his hands going from relaxed palms to clenched fist. His face looked absolutely deadly as an aura of killing surrounded him. Hannah's eyes watered as she took a step back. Why were those eyes being directed at her? Why was he looking at her with such distaste? She was just trying to protect him from that whench!
"Hikaru?" Hannah asked with an unstill voice. The man shook with rage as he threw out his hand quickly.
"Get out of here right now or by god I swear you won't make it out of this garden alive" He screamed out, his voice strong and thunderous. Haley flinched and put her head down, ashamed as Hannah stood strong, her watery eyes turning confident. Haruhi might have won this round yes…but she would win in the long run.
"…come on Haley…we'll have our chance to explain ourselves later….it's no use talking to such a man under the spell she has over him." Hannah whispered coolly as she waved her hand making Haley whisper a small apology in Hikaru's direction and run under her sister's arm as they quickly walked off, their previous violent streak seeming to be underneath them for the moment. The man's eyes glared daggers into them as they left and only softened when they were completely out of sight.
"My gosh that scared me so much." The boy whispered gently, completely out of tone from before as he now shivered. What would he have done if the girls didn't leave? He wouldn't have been able to bring himself to hit them, he was just glad they bought his act. Haruhi smiled slightly and clenched onto the grass as she tried to sit up.
"You kinda scared me too. Now come over here and help me up, I'm getting this dress dirty." Haruhi whispered as she coughed and rubbed her bruised head.
"Haruhi!" He yelled in a scared tone as he ran over to her before quickly. He sighed and looked down at her as she sat on her knees, hesitant to touch her. Haruhi looked down at the ground as she put out her arms like a small child wanting to be held. The orange haired boy sighed sadly and picked her up ever so carefully in his arms.
Haruhi winced every so often as his soft hands trailed over a bruise or cut but whispered a thank you under her breath. Haruhi stared up at him, surprised at the face that she found. Haruhi's eyes watered as she wrapped her arm around his neck and pulled her head into his shoulder. He sighed and rubbed her back lightly as he pressed his cold nose against the top of her head, not daring to put his lips on her.
"I thought you hated me." She whispered softly. The orange haired boy sighed heavily as he shook his head and held onto her tighter. He rubbed where her arm wasn't damaged and took his head out of her head just enough so she could hear him.
"Why would I hate you?" He asked with a large grin.
"…that was a pretty good act, but I still have to wonder…are you still acting… Kaoru…?" Haruhi whispered. Kaoru laughed softly and rubbed the back of his head, still holding onto her. He hid his sock as he slowly nodded and let out a relieved breath. Even in the dark of the night she was still able to tell the difference between the two of them. The worst part was that he was hoping she would think he was Hikaru if only for a moment.
"I didn't think they'd take me as seriously if they knew I wasn't Hikaru. Plus, it would have tottaly ruined the mood don't you think?" He asked nervously, trying to keep the air light between them. If Haruhi was still able to make jokes she would be fine. Haruhi smiled in his skin as she leaned against him cautiously. Kaoru continued to rub her back as he sat down in front of the pond, making sure to hold onto her as he slowly set her beside him.
"Sorry. I'm not as strong as Hikaru; I don't think I can carry you all the way back." Kaoru whispered as he stretched out his arm and pulled her head back to his shoulder. Haruhi closed her eyes as she watched the ducks slowly drift from the waters surface to the bushes.
"…It's ok…it's just a part of who you are Kaoru…nothing to apologize for. I like you just how you are…" Haruhi whispered softly. Kaoru looked back over at her and sighed as he patted her head lightly. He knew that she had added the last bit to tell him something that didn't need to be said. Haruhi could only watch as a few of the ducks quacked softly before swimming gracefully to the other side of the water's edge.
"Ha-ha! Ok! It's a promise then. Tomorrow I'll bring my brother!"
"…you ok Haruhi?" Kaoru asked, tilting his head. Haruhi slowly nodded as she felt her eyes looking back over to Kaoru.
"...Yea…I'm fine…just thinking" Haruhi whispered, her eyes fluttering open and closed as the pain from her wounds slowly started to vanish into a calming numb. Kaoru slowly nodded and rubbed the side of her cheek with his knuckle.
"About?"
"…about the first person I ever lost..." She whispered her eyes dazing off.
Kaoru slowly nodded, situating himself so that she could lean against him while he got relaxed, it would be a while till anyone found them so he mine as well be careful.
"…yea…me too…" he whispered as he looked down at her.
"Ha-Haruhi." A heaved voice whispered as the two twisted their heads behind them to see Hikaru breathing heavily as he leaned against the hedges in the garden, looking on the verge of tears. Haruhi smiled sweetly at him, waving as he looked down at the ground, rubbing his temple.
"….Haruhi…" He whispered pathetically. The man chuckled as he walked over and picked her up in his arms, not even caring for her permission as he wrapped her legs around him and squished her head into his chest as he let out heavy breaths. Hikaru kissed the side of her head quickly as he held onto her, his eyes oblivious to Kaoru.
"Haruhi are you ok?" He asked softly. Even though he knew the answer to his question he wanted to hear from her mouth that she would be ok. The boy held onto her for dear life as she gave a hushed cough. She forced out a giggle as she nodded, his hair scratching against her cheek.
"Yea...I'm fine Hikaru." Haruhi whispered as Hikaru flinched and wrapped his arms so that his hands were clenching onto her. Haruhi laughed a bit sadly as she rubbed Hikaru's back, trying not to upset him anymore.
"Hikaru you're squishing me." She moaned out. Hikaru didn't release her however.
"…tell me again…tell me again that you're ok." Hikaru whispered. Haruhi's eyes widened as she took in shaky breaths. How did he always manage to bring her to her knees? How could he always break through her with just one sentence? Once more the girls threats rang through her head as she suddenly threw herself into him, her head buried in his shoulder as she squeezed her legs around him, her hands clinging tightly onto his neck as she shook with silent sobs.
Kaoru felt an iron anvil drop in his stomach as he watched his brother sigh and return to holding her as he whispered words into her ear to calm her. Kaoru turned his head away quickly, trying so hard not to be jealous of their moment. Hikaru tried to hide his depression as he looked down at Haruhi and rubbed her hair, smoothing it down her neck and back as he kissed her cheek and forehead whenever she started to shake. How could he tell her the news that he dreaded to say when she was in such a weak state?
"…Haruhi…we're going to get you back to our house and get you taken care of….and then…we've got to talk to you? Ok?" Kaoru whispered kindly. Haruhi took her head out of Hikaru's shoulder and nodded as she rubbed at her dry eyes. She really didn't want anything to happen to her parents, but what could she do? Hikaru and Kaoru were her friends, and if she gave into that woman's temptations without even know the extent of her actual power she would regret it for the rest of her life.
Haruhi sighed as she put her head down on Hikaru when he settled her body so that he had a free hand. Haruhi let her eyes close halfway as she held onto him. She had never noticed how strong he was before, he had picked her up with ease and carried her without so much as a grunt many times before, but it was only at the moment when Kaoru attempted to take her away had she realized how well-built he really was.
Hikaru held her with one hand as he walked over to the sitting Kaoru and extended his hand for him. Kaoru blinked, looking at the extended palm for a few minutes before grabbing onto it quickly. Hikaru quickly pulled his brother off of the ground as Kaoru held onto Hikaru's hand tightly. He stood across from him, his red eyes staring at Hikaru's face.
"…Thanks…" He whispered softly. Hikaru could only smile.
"Heh...it's ok…I'll always be there for you…I hope you know that." Hikaru whispered. Kaoru's eyes widened as Hikaru let out a heavy sigh before laughing again and turning his back to the blindly innocent and confused Kaoru. Hikaru tried to smile like Kaoru could, but his smile was sad, and held pain in it as he gently caressed Haruhi's face. Hikaru ran his thumb down her bleeding lip and his eyes immediately watered. Looking back he saw that Kaoru was following behind them at the moment, his eyes averting from the two of them.
Hikaru took in a deep breath as he pushed Haruhi's hair out of her face and held his thumb against Haruhi's lip. Haruhi flinched, her eyes closing quickly as he did, a fresh trickle of blood sliding over the dried blood over her pink lips. Hikaru stared down at her, making her hazy face blush as he tilted his head so that it rested gently under her hair and in the crook of her neck.
Haruhi held onto the top of his head as he held her in the awkward position, her breathing becoming scary as her skin felt heated. She was sick, so of course her blood was rushing and her face felt heated. Haruhi nodded to herself; that must have been it. Hikaru let out a soft breath on her neck, only making the situation worse as he trailed up her chin until he was staring up at her bleeding lip.
Without so much as a word he didn't dare look back as he leaned up smoothly and trailed his tongue over her injury, taking her blood off of her and into him. Haruhi shivered and tried to push herself away but Hikaru merely swept her back into position before she could complain about what he had done.
"You better not have AIDS" He teased as she blushed like a school girl and hit his head with all of the strength she had left.
"Shut the hell up you rich bastard!"
Inside Kaoru smiled as his anger at Hikaru and Haruhi floated away into the night air. They hadn't made him sit on the sidelines- they had forced him into the game.
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"DAMN IT DAMN IT DAMN IT!" Hikaru screamed as he blasted the orange basketball he was holding at the hoop. It hit the rim, clanging off to the side as the ball bounced off the court. Hikaru sighed and took in heavy breaths as he bent over, sweat dripping off of his forehead. Haruhi had fallen asleep some time ago, and Kaoru had locked himself up in their room, attempting to find some peace of mind.
Hikaru, feeling so much anger that he thought he was going to burst, had turned to their gym to work off his anger. Hikaru sighed as he dropped to the floor; still rubbing his head for it was blasting with an oncoming migraine. Hikaru let his head drop so that he was looking at the wooden floor as everything began to spin again. It had been a long day, and he figured that it would only get longer after his little chat with Haruhi- for now however…he would let her sleep.
"…You doing ok Brother?" Kaoru asked in his normal high pitched voice as he walked through the gyms doors and onto the court floor. Hikaru let out a grunt as his answer before picking up the ball and shooting again, this time making it in with a successful swish. He had always been good at sports, but Kaoru always had a harder time keeping up with the constant physical demands, and had never made it as well as Hikaru did. Before, when they swore never to be apart, any type of difference was a bad thing- so Hikaru hid his natural athletic ability from everyone else and practiced in their home gymnasium.
"Look it's not that bad…" Kaoru whispered softly. At this Hikaru threw the basketball again, the unbroken focus of trying to get the ball in the hoop the only thing keeping him from blasting out of angry.
"NOT THAT BAD?!" Hikaru suddenly snapped out as he threw the basketball with one hand, making it bounce off the top of the hoop and to the back of the gym as Hikaru turned out quickly, throwing the towel off of his shoulder and onto the ground, his eyes flaming.
"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN IT'S NOT SO BAD?!" Hikaru screamed out, throwing his hands into the air. Kaoru could only stand in front of him, glancing down at the ground as his brother screamed; this is what he had needed to do all along. Hikaru was one of those people that needed to yell to get out his anger, even if it hurt those around him.
"…I'm sorry Kaoru…" Hikaru whispered as he hid his head in his hands. Kaoru looked up, Hikaru had never apologized like that before.
"..You don't need to apologize for yelling…I understand." Kaoru whispered in a soft tone as Hikaru shook again, this time a few tears spilling from his eyes as he looked up at his brother. Kaoru slipped back out of shock, he had never seen his brother look so scared before, so helpless.
"Not just for yelling Kaoru." He whispered tensely as he shook his head, his one stream of tear sliding off his cheek and onto the slick floor. Kaoru stood tense as his brother broke down right before his eyes.
"I'm sorry for everything…I'm so selfish…and I never think of you…and you're always suffering because of me…but you always smile and laugh like the idiot that you are. God you must hate me so much. I swear Kaoru I want so badly for Haruhi to love you instead of me." Hikaru whispered, not even daring to look at his brother as he took in soft breaths, his hands twitching as Kaoru blinked.
"…Ho-how…how long have you known?" Kaoru asked softly.
"…always…ever since I woke up…" Hikaru cried out, throwing his hands over his face as he started to cry harder.
"But you still cut those cords in hopes that she'd end up with me!" Hikaru yelled, shaking even harsher at the memory as he clung to his skin.
"Br-Brother…please stop crying…" Kaoru whimpered out, his own eyes watering as he saw his brother for the first time sob in front of him. Hikaru had only cried once in public, and any other time, if ever, he had secluded himself from everyone- including Kaoru.
"I found them when we were leaving. I had never felt so ashamed of myself in my life. I actually put a move on her when I knew that you loved her! I'm the worst! I'm the worst type of person!" Hikaru yelled as he moved his hands, his eyes closed tightly and red from tears as they streamed down his face freely.
"Brother…please…please stop." Kaoru whispered, flinching at every tear that hit the ground.
"I was in so much pain when I thought you were dead but now that you're alive I'm walking all over you again- taking advantage of your kindness and taking the one person that really means a lot to you!" Hikaru yelled as his knees shook, his eyes wavering as his eyes, usually happy and carefree, became small and shook.
"A man like me is better off dead."
"STOP IT!"
Kaoru became the spitting image of his brother as he shook with fear as he jumped forward and used both of his hands to knock Hikaru down onto the ground. Kaoru's arms shook lightly as he stood frozen in place.
"You don't need to apologize for everything…I understand…." Kaoru whispered as he stared down at his brother. Hikaru sniffed a bit, composing himself together as he wiped at his eyes quickly and blinked away the rest of the tears. Kaoru gave a weak smile before putting out his hand for his brother to take. Hikaru slowly clasped his hand in Kaoru's before closing his eyes pulled his brother down.
Kaoru did not yell but could only gasp as he was sent tripping down to the floor by Hikaru's hands. Hikaru pulled him in tighter so that he landed in Hikaru's arms. Hikaru wrapped a tight arm around Karou's back as he stuffed his head onto his chest, holding him in a tight hug. Kaoru blinked and slowly wrapped his arms around Hikaru as well.
"…Sorry brother…" Kaoru whispered as he flinched and slowly started to cry onto his brother.
"Sorry for everything…."
"…Kaoru…." Hikaru suddenly whispered.
"…Yes Hikaru?" Kaoru asked softly.
"…I don't want to be engaged…"
"…Neither do I Hikaru…neither do I."
