AN: Bet you didn't expect me to be back so soon, but I'm here with another chapter. Although I do have a plan for where the fic is going to go, I am totally open to ideas for filler chapters or just fun things for the Host Club to do while they're in America! We've just got one review today, so let's get started!

wealhtheow1: Yay! That's my favorite thing to hear! Also, you win points with coming up with a great song for everyone. Honey's is amazing and Mori's is perfect. The Sound of Silence is one of my ironic faves and I'll definitely be incorporating that in somewhere.

Monday. Even during the summer, it was truly the bane of the week. Ena woke up feeling groggy and gross, not having slept very well the night before. She was still mulling over everything she and Kaoru had talked about last night. This seemed to be a common occurrence now that the the Host Club was here. If Ena was going to be having any more 'Dr. Ashwood' sessions, her late night broods wouldn't be letting up anytime soon.

She glanced over at her bedside clock, shocked to see that the Club had let her actually sleep in for once. Ena rolled off her bed and got her feet, swaying slightly before wandering over to her kitchen. A quick check in her fridge confirmed what she had suspected. No food. Ena shut the fridge with a sigh and fell over on her couch.

It made sense, in the end. She hadn't expected to be here this long, so she hadn't gone shopping before school ended. Ena threw a hand over her eyes, not really wanting to get up. Her head was hurting from all the madness that weekend and she desperately needed a coffee. But, she had to get up to do that. Although, if she got up and went shopping, she could get coffee while she was out...

Ena leaped up, almost falling down immediately. "Kay, food first, then caffeine."

Ena didn't bother much with clothes, deciding to just pull on a hoodie over her sleeping shirt and put on some jogging shorts. She pulled her hair up off her neck and and into a long ponytail and grabbed some comfy shoes. With her purse in hand, she reached for the doorknob. Now, just to get out without attracting attention.

Ena winced as the door creaked open loudly and again as it creaked shut. She tip toed towards the staircase, freezing when one of the doors at the end of the hall open. Haruhi peeked out, seeing Ena standing mid-sneak by the stairs. The younger girl had the good sense not to speak, but instead conveyed her confusion through a questioning look.

Ena mimed opening a fridge and then made a sad face. She then pretended to push around a shopping cart and picking foods from the shelves. Finally, she made an angry face, before pretending to drink and then smiling cheerily.

Haruhi aahed, nodding in understanding. Thankfully, she understood mime. Then she zipped her lips, winking at the older teen. Ena brought her hands together, waving them at her thankfully and rushing out the stairs and into the morning sun. She ran over to her scooter, which had been horribly neglected over the weekend, and tossed her bag into the basket. With a quick kick, she started it up and drove off into town.

Vee's seemed like the best choice for breakfast and Barb should be on her first shift right now, so they would be able to chat a bit. Ena puttered up to the almost empty restaurant, tossing off her helmet and heading inside. Barb was there, having heard the unmistakable sound of Ena's scooter.

"No party today?" Barb lead her to her usual booth, a small one in the corner of the diner.

"Nope!" Ena grinned, not even bothering to pick up the menu.

"The usual, then?"

"Yes please!"

Barb bustled off, telling the cook that 'Enas here!'. Soon she came back around, filling up Ena's mug with hot coffee before checking in with the few other tables. Ena dumped sugar in the cup, forgoing cream and chugged her first few sips.

"Mmm."

Barb carried over a plate with a ham and cheese omelet with toast on the side, before plopping down across the girl. Ena took a couple happy bites of food, before looking back up at her friend. Barb was giving her a worried look, glancing between the plate and Ena's face.

"You been eating okay?" Barb asked.

Ena slowed. "Mostly. I've just been busy with the exchange students and haven't gotten to the grocery store in a little while."

"Alright." Barb allowed. "Take care of yourself though."

"I am, I just got sidetracked."

Barb shook her head, patting Ena's free hand before standing to go deliver more food. "I'll be right back."

Ena nodded and engrossed herself in eating for a while longer. She was starting to feel less dizzy and it was nice to have a little break from the school. Soon, her plate was empty and she was sipping the last of her coffee down. Barb came by the pot again.

"Staying long enough for a second cup?"

"Always." Ena smiled while Barb filled her glass and sat with a sigh.

"How long have you been working today?" Ena questioned the tired looking girl.

"Since dawn. " Barb leaned her head on her hand, staring out over the restaurant. "All the truckers come in early, so I try to be here for them."

Ena frowned. "You work too hard."

"Says Miss Workaholic." Barb teased. "Just gotta make ends meet, you know?"

"How are the boys?"

"Really good. Timmy is starting high school year after next. It looks like he'll be in advanced classes. And AJ's been doing well at the elementary school." Barb smiled fondly, thinking about her brothers.

"If you ever need me too, I could put in a good word at Beecher." Ena offered. "When I graduate next year, there will be a new scholarship spot open."

"I'd appreciate that." Barb glanced over at the cook to make sure she wasn't needed yet. "Ever since he found out you've been going there, he's been interested. I'll talk to him about sometime this summer."

"Great! Just let me know it you need anything."

"Will do." Barb nodded, picking up Ena's dishes. "The lunch rush will be starting soon."

"Yeah, I've got some grocery shopping to do." Ena sighed, standing as well and giving her friend a quick hug. "See you later!"

"Give me a call sometime and we can talk about the crazy train, yeah?"

"Sure thing!" Ena waved after paying, heading back to her scooter and kicking off.

"That girl is gonna run herself ragged." Barb told the cook as she picked up a new order.

Greg, who had known Ena as long as she'd been in town, nodded in agreement a flipped some pancakes. "I just hope there is someone there to pick her up when she falls over."

Ena returned to the dorms, arms filled with groceries for the next couple weeks. She struggled up the stairs and to her room, dropping her key outside her door.

"Shoot." She stared down at it, trying to figure out a way to pick it up without losing all her groceries.

"Wow, clumsy much?" A voice called from behind her, making her startle.

Ena glanced over her shoulder, seeing Hikaru walking down the hall with a smirk. She sighed, kicking at the key with her foot when a hand shot out and picked it up. Hikaru unlocked the door and opened it for her, moving so she could get in.

"Oh, thank you." Ena blinked surprisedly, waddling into her kitchen to drop the bags.

Hikaru hoved awkwardly in the door, as if unsure he could come in.

"You can sit, if you'd like." Ena inclined her head to the couch.

Hikaru nodded, taking a seat and staring around the room. They stayed in silence for a bit as Ena put away groceries. It was, almost comfortable, though Ena wasn't sure why he had bothered helping her and coming in.

"Everyone was wondering where you went." Hikaru piped up, sounding a little accusing.

"Really?" Ena asked. "I told Haruhi I was heading out."

"Yeah, well she wouldn't tell us anything." Hikaru complained. "Just that you were gone and that we should leave you alone for a while."

Bless that child. Ena grinned as she tidied the bags and stuck them in her pantry.

"No need to look so pleased about it." Hikaru stood, refiling through her bookshelves.

"It was just nice of her to respect my privacy." Ena marched over to him, grabbing the book from his hand. "Unlike some people."

Hikaru humphed, walking over to her desk on the other side of the room and looking at the papers on it. Ena sighed, putting the book back in it's place and trailing the more volatile twin.

"Did you just come over here to dig through my stuff?"

"I didn't get to look around when we came over for breakfast the other day." Hikaru picked up some sketches from the desk. "You draw?"

"A little." Ena shrugged, sitting on her couch. "Mostly just doodles."

"This one isn't awful." He pointed a little sketch she'd done of the trees outside the dorm, on a sunny spring day when she had a bit of time on her hands.

"Thanks, I think?"

Hikaru moved on, investigating her kitchen and glancing at her whiteboard. He tapped the reminder from breakfast a few days ago. Ena had completely forgot to ask anyone about it, it had been a little chaotic. She was about to bring it up, but Hikaru got to it first.

"No one's allergic to anything. Except Kyoya, he's allergic to fun."

Ena snorted, stretching out her legs. "He seems nice enough."

"That's because you haven't seen him as the Shadow King." Hikaru shuddered. "One time, we took him to a commoner's market and he went all evil afterwards."

"I heard about that, though from Haruhi's point of view."

Hikaru wandered back over to the couch, sitting at the far end. Ena rose an eyebrow at him, still trying to figure out why he'd come over in the first place. He looked like he wanted to ask about something, but was uncomfortable. Ena decided to take to blunt approach, nudging the younger boy with her foot.

"Out with it."

"What?" Hikaru looked confused.

"Somethings on your mind." Ena drew her legs up under her. "You don't have to beat around the bush anymore. Time to let the cat out of the bag."

"Your cliches aren't making me want to talk to you." Hikaru crossed his arms.

Ena rolled eyes in return. "Hikaru."

"Fine." He slouched a bit, looking more uncomfortable and less defiant. "Kaoru told me that he talked to you yesterday. And I know you talked with Haruhi. They both seem...more relaxed now. I think it has to do with you."

"Well, I'm glad I could help. Although, I'd like to point out, I'm not actually a doctor, or a psychiatrist for that matter."

"I know that." Hikaru exclaimed. "You're just...far away from it all."

"Kaoru said something similar." Ena noted. "Talking to someone without bias is probably helpful."

"I don't want to talk about it now." Hikaru told her, looking down at his hands. "I just want to keep my options open."

"Okay." Ena shrugged, leaning back against the couch.

"Okay? No psychoanalysis? No pestering?" Hikaru stared at the girl.

"I only pester when I need to." Ena explained. "I'm not gonna push you if you aren't ready to talk about it."

"Huh." Hikaru leaned back as well. "I thought you were going to be more direct."

"I may have similar qualities to Haruhi," Ena gestured in the general direction of the girl's room, "but I don't think I could ever achieve that level of bluntness."

Hikaru chuckled at that and Ena was surprised to find his laugh was a lot like Kaoru's when it wasn't teasing or mean spirited. He sounded more open and relaxed. And a lot nicer.

"My friend, Lucy, is almost there though." Ena rolled to her feet, before taking up her spot in the Thinking Chair.

"Yeah." Hikaru rolled with the change in conversation. "She seemed..."

"I know." Ena agreed. "She's a bit like you too. Lucy opens up around people when she's comfortable and kinda forgets herself. She doesn't really think before she speaks, but she's funny and smart when you get to know her."

"You think I'm funny and smart?" Hikaru smirked.

Ena rolled her eyes again. "I think that deep, deep down, you are a little funny and smart."

He seemed pleased by this, before looking a little embarrassed. "It was nice of her to give us tickets to the festival, I guess."

"Yeah, I'm glad Honey convinced her to come along. It's a little ways off, but it will be fun!"

"Have you been to this before?"

Ena nodded. "Yeah, last year I went with Lucy and my other friend Megan, who you'll meet today. Barb, from the diner the other day, was working at a stand so we went and hung out with her a bit. There's tons of games and rides and the fireworks at the end of the night are awesome."

"That doesn't sound too bad." Hikaru allowed, glancing at his phone. "Kaoru's asking where I went. I was the only one who noticed your loud scooter drive up."

"I guess I better let them know I'm back." Ena stood with a sigh, stretching out her legs.

"I'll walk with you." Hikaru hopped up and opened to door for her, proving he could be a gentleman when the time called for it.

"Thanks, kid." Ena teased.

Hikaru rolled his eyes, letting it slide this time.

The Club practically exploded when Ena walked through the door to Haruhi's room, which seemed to be their main meeting spot. Tamaki flailed a little bit, demanding to know where their tour guide had disappeared to. Honey bounced around asking about treats and cakes and the grocery store, talking at a million miles an hour. Even Kyoya was trying to get her attention, having some question or request he had to talk about right now while everyone else was losing their minds.

From what she was hearing, it seemed Haruhi had caved eventually and told them she went out shopping. However, because they didn't know what shop she'd been in, they couldn't go out and find (stalk) her. Ena was grateful for that, glad she hadn't tried to mime out 'Lucy's family's store' earlier that day. But she really needed to do something about the ridiculous amount of shouting that was going on...

"Oh my god, would you all chill out for a second?" Ena yelled over the noise, effectively shutting everyone up.

"Thanks!" It was only slightly sarcastic on the girl's part. "Tamaki, collect yourself."

The blonde had fallen on the ground dramatically when Ena shouted and he rolled over to Haruhi, who sighed but petted his hair.

"Honey, I didn't buy you sweets, but I can make you something later." She directed at the boy who jumped excitedly. "Kyoya, you can ask me about your very important business thing later."

Kyoya adjusted his glasses and made no comment.

"Mori, Haruhi, Kaoru." Ena turned to the three. "Thank you for being so pleasant."

"You're welcome." They chorused.

"Now that that is resolved," Ena check her phone, "Mori and Honey are meeting with my friend Megan in an hour or so and then we're having dinner with her later tonight."

"Can we go to Vee's?" Honey asked sweetly.

"We'll have to talk to her about it, but I'm sure she wouldn't mind." Ena shrugged. "Although, there are a lot of other restaurants in town that are really good that we haven't been to yet."

"Okay, Ena-chan!" Honey giggled. "I can't wait to meet Meg-chan!"

"I'm sure she can't wait to meet you either." Ena glanced at everyone else. "Have we calmed down now?"

Nods.

"Great! I thought we could go to a mall while we wait for Honey and Mori."

And then everything exploded again.

Ena sighed as she was dragged into another store by the Host Club. The van had gotten them a few stares, even more so when the exchange students piled out. The group of men (and Haruhi and Ena) sauntered into the mall, but that was the end of their composure. Tamaki and the twins shot off like kids in a candy store while Kyoya wandered away by himself, muttering something about 'flashbacks' and 'idiot Tamaki'.

Soon, the three idiots returned for the girls, dragging them away from the bookstore they had found and into store after store. Haruhi wasn't able to get away, being held onto by the boyfriend most of the time, but Ena managed to escape to the food court and get a frappuccino. She sat on one of the benches of the upper level, swinging her legs as she sipped at the iced treat.

"I see that you've found caffeine." A voice pointed out from next to her, giving Ena her second heart attack of the day.

She glanced up at the dark haired man, who in turn sat at her side.

"Want some?" Ena offered the drink to Kyoya, who gave it a disdainful look.

"Not really."

"You're a purist, huh?" Ena teased.

"I just prefer my coffee without any additives." The man shrugged.

The two sat quietly together, Kyoya being his usual buinessy self and Ena enjoying her coffee. As they sat, a song started playing from Ena's pocket.

"Ooo child, things are gonna get easier..." The Five Stairsteps sung.

"I gotta answer this," Ena pulled out her phone, "that's my brother."

Kyoya gestured for her to do so and returned to his work.

"Hello?"

"Why aren't you here?!" A loud voice came from the cell.

Ena flinched, having expected this for a while. "Heyyy Henry."

"Don't 'hey' me! I wanna know why my big sister isn't coming home for summer vacation!"

"Some stuff came up..." Ena glanced at Kyoya, who appeared to be listening. "I'm a little busy at the moment."

"What stuff?"

"Um, exchange students from Japan?"

"...what does that have to do with you?"

"I'm supposed to tour them around and help them acclimate to America." Ena felt a little uncomfortable having this conversation in front of Kyoya, but it couldn't really be helped.

"...that sucks."

"Not really. They're pretty nice."

Kyoya motioned to Ena's empty cup and the garbage can. Ena shook her head confusedly, but he just grabbed her cup and walked it over.

"Hen, you'll never believe who I met."

"Who?"

"Kyoya Ootori, of the Ootori group."

"...are you serious!?"

Ena laughed. "I'm looking at him right now. He just threw away my trash for me and he's walking back over here."

"Oh my gosh! Can I talk to him?"

"We're actually at a mall right now, so it may not be the best time." Ena frowned up at Kyoya, who was standing in front of her, holding out his hand for her phone. "Actually, he's asking to talk to you."

Ena handed the cell.

"Hello, Henry?" Kyoya asked, flicking on the charming switch. "Your sister told me you want to be a doctor."

Ena could just barely hear Henry respond.

"I'm planning to study it a little, but afterwards I'm going into business."

More muffled talking.

"Yes, I'm sorry about that. Ena has been a wonderful guide to us though and we're glad you were able to lend her to us."

A pause and a question.

"He'd like to talk to you again." Kyoya passed back the phone.

"Yes?"

"...he's pretty cool."

"Yeah, he is." Ena laughed. "I really am sorry."

"I guess it's okay. As long as you call a lot and we can Skype."

"Of course! Whenever you want."

"Okay. Mom's calling me, so I gotta go. Bye Ena."

"Bye Hen. Love you. Talk to you soon."

They hung up and Ena sighed, staring down at her screen. That went better than she could of hoped, but still not well. Henry had sounded really disappoint there at the end. No amount of hero worship would stop him from being upset about all of this.

"When were you assigned to us?" Kyoya asked, sitting back down on the bench.

"Uh, the day I met you?" Ena answered.

"Were you planning to go back to Oregon?"

"Yes." Ena nodded. "I got held up over Spring Break, so I haven't seen my family since last Christmas."

"And you probably won't until the next." It wasn't a question, but Ena nodded anyways.

"Yeah."

Kyoya hummed, turning back to his phone. The silence was a little less easy now. She hadn't told anyone else in group about this yet. Ena didn't want to make it seem like she didn't want to be there, even though that was mostly the case. She enjoyed the Club enough, it was just difficult being away from her family when she expected to spend months with them. Ena gave another sigh, before rising. Kyoya's eye followed her movements behind his glasses.

"We better find everyone else, we need to meet up with Honey and Mori soon."

Kyoya nodded, standing and motioning for her to lead the way.

Dinner with Megan was pleasant. She was as bubbly as always and the Club seemed enamored with her. Honey and Mori had taken to her during their tour and now they talked like old friends. Megan had picked a nice restaurant near the school to eat at and everyone seemed impressed with the food. The college student wasn't on a scholarship and although she wasn't as snooty as everyone else at the schools could be, she was still on the wealthy side.

"I'm glad that Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai will have a friend at the college." Haruhi told Megan at one point during the dinner.

"I'm just glad I could help out!" Megan smiled sweetly. "I'll introduce them to my group, so they'll be in good hands."

"When did you and Ena meet?" Kaoru asked the college student.

"Well, she transferred over during her sophomore year, which would be first year for you guys. We were in the same English class because she's a freaking genius."

"Aren't you two years older than her?" Hikaru jumped in.

"Yeah, like I said, genius. She was in all senior classes last year and she's probably going to have to walk over to the college for classes next year."

The Host Club all turned to Ena, who was ducking her head during the conversation.

"I'm on a scholarship, so I have to work really hard to make sure my grades are good. I just...over did it a little bit and they had to put me into advanced classes."

"Ena-chan, you're really smart, huh?" Honey beamed, making the girl sputter a little.

"I wouldn't say that! I just like learning things and get ahead in school work."

"Oh don't listen to her, she's just trying to be humble." Megan nudged her friend's side. "You're allowed to be smart, child."

"I'm seventeen!"

Soon after, they had finished their meals and parted ways, the Club heading back to the dorm and Megan to her apartment downtown. In the van, everyone talked about Megan and how nice she was. Ena remained mostly silent, thinking back on what she had discussed with Kyoya earlier. Should she tell everyone that she'd been planning to go home? Did it matter?

It felt like she was being dishonest. Here she was, acting like the happy-go-lucky tour guide when she was really thinking about how she wouldn't be seeing her family for months. Homesickness hit her hard after her talk with Henry. Probably because the fact she wasn't going home had become more of a reality.

They arrived back at the dorms and everyone but Ena climbed out of the car and into the building. Ena rested her head on the steering wheel, sighing unhappily. A headache was coming on fast and she could tell that the groggy feeling from earlier was kicking back in. A quick knock came on her window and she looked up to see Haruhi standing there, looking concerned.

"Are you okay?" She spoke through the glass.

Ena nodded, pushing the door open slowly as the girl backed up. "I'm fine. Just tired."

"Alright. You should get to bed early tonight then."

"Yeah, I probably should." Ena stretched, walking quietly with the girl.

"You seem to be quiet since you came back with Kyoya-senpai at the mall. Did he say something to you?"

"No, nothing like that." Ena assured her. "I just got a call from my little brother."

"Oh." Haruhi followed the girl into the lobby. "The one that you miss?"

"Yeah. It's just..." Ena tugged at her ponytail.

"Just what?" Haruhi asked.

"I just...I had planned to go back to Oregon this summer." Ena said quickly.

Haruhi looked confused for a moment, before it seemed to dawn on her. "Oh. You can't because of us, right?"

Ena nodded, she was not loving the way Haruhi worded it, but it was close enough.

"I haven't been home since Christmas."

Haruhi thought a moment and they stayed at a stand-still.

"You know, Ena, we're away from home too."

Ena blinked at the girl.

"That is to say, we all know how it feels to be away from our families." Haruhi added. "You don't have to keep it all to yourself."

"I..."

"Ha-RU-hi! ENA!" Tamaki called from upstairs. "We're going to watch a movie!"

Haruhi looked up from where his face came. "We're on our way!"

"You don't have to be alone in this." Haruhi told Ena as she headed up the stairs. "We'll understand if you ever want to talk about it."

Ena remained in the lobby, staring at the floor.

"...Okay."

The Club was gathered in Haruhi's room and they had brought pillows and blankets to cover the floor. Hikaru handed Ena a bowl of popcorn and patted the floor next to him. Tamaki and Haruhi took the loveseat (which the later was very excited about) and the college students had sat up on the couch. Even Kyoya was there, sitting in a recliner and looking at his phone. Ena glanced up at him and caught his eyes.

He raised an eyebrow that seemed to say "Have you figured it out yet?"

Ena nodded and Kyoya inclined his head.

"Everybody ready?" Tamaki asked, waving the remote.

"Just play it already!" Hikaru threw some popcorn at the man.

Tamaki shielded Haruhi, who told group at large that she wasn't gonna clean up any of the mess they made. Everyone cracked up and Tamaki pressed play. Ena smiled in the dark, listening to the quiet commentary from everyone and nibbling on her popcorn. Sitting here with the Club helped her get out of the funk she'd been in all day and relax. She felt a little closer to everyone. After all, the were even farther away from home than her. She settled against a pile of pillows and enjoyed the movie.

AN: In case it wasn't clear, Kyoya and Tamaki are going to be seniors, Ena is as well. The twins and Haruhi are in the Junior year, and obviously, Honey and Mori are attending college. Although it's a little confusing in the manga, what with the several Christmases and the repeated years at school, I didn't want to send Tamaki and Kyoya to the college quite yet.

Today's review project is a little different. I already mentioned it in the first note, but if you could brainstorm some fun filler chapters, that would help me a lot! Like I said, I know where the story is going and I have about 18 chapters planned altogether, including some fillers already, but if y'all can think of something you'd like to see over the summer (or later, like in the school year) let me know!