ATTENTION READERS: This is the Beta version of LH5W, if you want to read the official, updated version of the story, you'll have to go over to DeviantArt. com and head on over to my page. My username is Aloubell. You can also get there by going to my fanfiction. net profile which provides a link over there.
In any case, this Beta version is basically the rough draft of LH5W, my first attempt at it. Much of the plot points from this version will be the same in the official version, but there are significant and consistent characterization changes, a few (but very important) plot differences, expansion of past ideas, and overall better quality in storytelling.
All of this will be done over on DeviantArt. I no longer will write the story in traditional prose nor submit/update it here to fanfiction. net. The Beta version will remain here, just know that it isn't the 100% official story.
The official version will be written in a lazy prose mixed with play-writing elements (you'll get what I mean when you see it).
This is the new format for the story from now on.
So please head on over there if you're interested in updates to the story! Thank you for stopping by =D
-Aloe
PLEASE NOTE: The official version is being written somewhat out of order. The official version will start on chapter 46, the place where the Beta version left off. The official version will go on to complete the last chapters of Season 2. Once those are done, I will redo the story over again from Chapter 1 which will be the official version.
Having said that, if you choose to continue on reading, I hope you enjoy the Beta version and look forward to the official!
Sitting against the wall with my legs tucked in and head buried in my arms, I thought about how much those two had hurt me. Thinking that two people who pretended to like you—who acted like they actually wanted to be my friend—really thought of you as some type of item.
"Aki, as a friend of my precious daughter Haruhi, I can't just let a sweet girl like you sit there with such a sad look on her face." Haruhi's father Ryoji "Ranka" Fujioka, sat at my level and showed me a look of concern in those soft brown eyes of his.
Bringing up my head, I gave him a small, forced smile. "You don't have to do anything for me Mr. Fujioka—"
He wagged his finger at me. "It's Ranka my dear, remember? None of that 'Mr' stuff."
"Okay then, Ranka, you don't have to do anything for me. I'm good. Just go off to work, I'll be fine." The day before, when I had that whole scene with the twins, I had decided to take refuge at Haruhi's apartment. It may have been true that the twins favored her more than me, but it would have been stupid to be mad at her about it. This whole thing had to do with Hikaru and Kaoru's feelings, and since Haruhi was really oblivious to things like that, then there was no point in blaming her for anything. She didn't mind me staying at her house and she even promised not to tell the rest of the Host Club where I was—well, she couldn't tell the members of the club who either a.) couldn't keep a secret, or b.) had the name Hikaru or Kaoru. The last thing I needed was a bunch of hyper guys swinging by trying to make everything better, especially when I knew they would probably make things a lot worse. "Haruhi will be home soon anyway. I don't want to put you out more than I already have."
Tossing his long, wavy, reddish-brown hair back, he giggled a bit. "Oh, Aki! You have been no trouble at all! I'm happy to help out a special girlfriend of my Haruhi." Hesitantly standing up, he took out a compact mirror to check his makeup. When he closed it, he gave me a sympathetic look. "I'm here of you want to talk."
I can't talk to you—I have no idea who you are. You may be nice, but you're still just Haruhi's father to me. "No, really, it's fine. I'll cope in my own way. I don't want to be the one to make you late for work."
Grabbing his purse, he slowly inched towards the door. "O…kay. I'm off then." As he opened the door, he looked back at me. "I'm sure everything will be alright. Just trust in your friends. That Host Club may be filled with a bunch of weird, perverted boys, but they've done wonders on my Haruhi. I'm almost positive that if you give them a chance, they can be just as a blessing for you."
All I could do was nod at him before he smiled again and shut the door. As my thoughts came back into focus, the atmosphere in the room darkened once more. Thinking of how I had come to a new world to start a new life with a bunch of friends who didn't judge, I couldn't help but bury my head again. A part of me really just wanted to leave and go onto my next destination—for me to get one of my visions to reveal that I had taken yet another girls place so that I could move on. I had a feeling, though, that the universe wasn't going to let me out of this predicament so easily.
Sitting by myself in that lonely room helped me to search my memory long enough to recall the days when the thought of Saru and Kyoko didn't make me want to hurl. With them, I had finally been a part of something as opposed to just my older sisters' shadow. They would include me in their plans and attempt—very horribly—to understand my deep loneliness as well as the darkness that surrounded my being. Even though they were with me, I figured that my dark aura had affected them just like they had everybody else. But I was wrong. They actually had a bit of an resistance to it—I could even feel it. It was like…they had something that withstood the power of my mysterious aura, protecting them from most of its effects. It was then that I realized that I could finally have friends—that someone would accept me other than my sister.
But it wasn't genuine.
Eventually, I began to figure out that something was off about the whole relationship. They'd use me to figure out their problems and get them out of bad situations. When it turned out that I needed to talk or if I had problems to fix, they would go off and do their own thing with their real friends. The years passed and their obligations to me thinned more and more. No matter how much I wanted to ditch those two for once, I always found that I couldn't do it. I just didn't want to be alone. How pathetic was I to have to force myself to stick to fake friends? Yeah, it hurt to know that there was no place for me in their hearts. But...what choice did I honestly have?
Everything was worse now that I thought I actually made real friends that understood me and wanted to be around me. The whole time, I was just their plaything…
The barrier around me had been dulled, allowing more people in. Yet, it seemed like things were still the same. What am I to the rest of the Host Club? Am I actually important to them, or am I convenient for their business?
As negative thoughts continued to flow through my mind, a slight breeze started to take over the room. Papers ruffled, curtains swayed, and my hair started to uplift. Don't get me wrong, in the past whenever my emotions went haywire, wind would blow all over the place in the form of either an uncomfortable whirlwind or a hell-bent tornado. This time, I was completely under control—completely aware of the wind I was creating. I was just too upset to even care about stopping it. This apartment complex is lucky that I can control my emotional magic. Otherwise, it'd end up in as bad a state as the shadow creatures left Kaibara High.
Hearing the locks on the door click, I remained in my place while looking to see who was entering. Not a second later, Haruhi walked in. She was actually wearing a semi-girly outfit consisting of a light blue, v-neck blouse and capris. When she wasn't at school, she was free to be a girl—as long as no one from the school besides the Host Club saw her. She stood in front of the door, holding it slightly open behind her.
"Senpai, I know you don't want to talk about this, but I figured that you should talk to someone who can give advice way better than I could." What the hell, Haruhi! You didn't—
As the door opened wider, Mitsukuni—with a smile on his face—and Takashi—with a rather stoic look on his face (ah, it' nice to see that some things don't change!) walked inside. Letting out a huge exhale, my heart calmed down. I guess it's better them than the other inseparable two. But still Haruhi, what the hell?
The wind continued to blow even as all three of them sat on the floor around me.
"Aki-chan, Haru-chan told us what happened. Kao-chan and Hika-chan were just playing around." Mitsukuni said. "Please don't be sad."
Turning to Haruhi, I gave her a look. She must have known what I was about to say because she spoke up first, "I know you said not to tell anyone, but I figured that we could trust Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai. Out of all the guys in the Host Club, don't you agree that these two can keep a secret the best?" I was slightly skeptical about Mitsukuni keeping the secret, but I knew that he was way more mature than he looked or acted. So maybe Haruhi was right. "They just want to help."
Acknowledging their goal, I made the wind die down a bit.
"There's a certain line you guys. Blackmailing me is one thing, a bad thing, but a less-worse thing. Tracking me for their sick little amusement, depriving me of freedom, and treating me like a newly-opened Christmas present is so far past the line that you couldn't even spot it with the world's largest telescope!" Burying my head in my arms once more, I turned my head to the side slightly. "Those damn twins were jerks before and they're even bigger jerks now."
"Senpai, those two…definitely do things to their own rhythm, but we can't totally blame them for it. That's just how they are."
Choosing to not respond to her, Mitsukuni spoke instead. "Please, Aki-chan. The Host Club isn't a real family without you in it. And real families don't fight like this." Uhh…yeah they do. I'd like you to show me a family that is always happy. If you can do that, make sure you rush them to therapy because they clearly need some help. Completely surprising me, his face became serious."Good families find ways to fix their problems so that they could stay together. Did you know that Kao-chan and Hika-chan stayed in their house all day yesterday and today? They wouldn't talk or see anyone!"
"They're just feeling guilty. The two jerks deserve some guilt." Just cause they're guilty doesn't mean that they're sorry. It just means that their conscious' have more of a brain than they do.
As if he ignored my statement, he continued. "Not only that, but those two really do care about you. Why else would they give you so much attention?"
"'Cause they're bored." Laughing bitterly, I used a semi-low pitched voice to mock the twins. "'Oh look! There's a witch! Let's blackmail her to make sure she can't get away. You know why, because she's our pet! Since we're two rich bastards, we think we can get away with whatever we want! And for added kicks, let's put some punk tracking device on her to make sure that she really doesn't get away. While we're over here making idiots out of ourselves, let's watch as Aki entertains us. The moment she becomes boring, and her magic is all used up, let's move onto the next interesting thing or person comes along.'" I face Haruhi. "'Hey Haruhi! You're fun and entertaining. Why don't we hang out? At least we really like you—'"
"Enough!" Takashi's angry voice rang through the apartment as I sat there, completely stunned. The three of us looked at the usually non-spoken guy, eyes wide (except Mitsukuni, who knew Takashi better than either of us), as the wind immediately ceased. "Can you honestly just sit there and talk about the twins as if they mean nothing to you now?"
Recovering from the shock, I shot back at him. "Why should they mean anything to me? I obviously mean nothing to them."
"That's not true and you know it!" He sighed and smoothed out his hair. "Maybe it's true that most of us don't know your situation and what you've been through, but all of us can see that neither party involved in this isn't proud of anything that has happened. We know that you're upset, but that doesn't give you the right to mask your feelings with hatred!" Taken aback, I sat there—speechless. Is he right? Am I just faking my dislike of those two? How do I really feel? "And is it really the two of them that you're mad at, or is it just one of them?" Hikaru… Yeah...I was mad at him. He made believe that I was feeling something real. How foolish was I? "You need to face you're problems Aki, you can't run from them." Giving a reassuring smile, his voice softened, "Just talk to him."
Haruhi still had a rather awed look on her face. "Wow, senpai."
Mitsukuni gave a wide grin. "Just listen to Takashi, Aki-chan! He knows what he's talking about! Just talk to Hika-chan and everything will be alright!"
Huh, who would've thought that the quietest guy in the whole group would be the one to put everything in perspective? And now he kind of made me feel like a jackass.
"I have some serious thinking to do you guys." I said under my breath.
Breathing sighs of relief, they all got up from their spots. Takashi nodded—apparently too pooped from making a speech, so now he needs to rest—as he headed towards the door with Mitsukuni. Before they left, Mitsukuni ran up to me with his pink stuffed rabbit extended out to me.
"Here, Aki-chan!"
"Mitsukuni…"
"You need Usa-chan more than I do right now. He always helps me think and makes me feel better when I'm down."
"I can't take Usa-chan from you. He's your favorite…"
He shook his head. "I'm lending him to you. Just hand him back to me tomorrow at the twins' party, kay?" With hesitation, I reached out and took Usa-chan-bringing it towards my body, feeling how soft and comfortable it was.
"But…I don't know if I'm even going to that party. I can't—"
"Of course you're going! It's going to be fun!" He patted my back harsher than intended. Clapping his hands in an epiphany, he motioned over to Takashi. "Oh, I almost forgot! Takashi, give her the dress!" Dress?
Reaching outside of the door, he brought in a black garment bag with a hanger sticking out. Placing it on the table, he flashed me a quick smile that made me slightly blush. Taking my hand, Mitsukuni looked straight into my eyes with his wide, brown puppy-dog ones.
"Tama-chan got this dress especially for you! He knows that he can't dress up Haruhi since the ladies will be there, but he was more than happy to get you a very pretty one! So please say that you'll be there tomorrow."
It was hard to resist those adorable huge chocolate-brown eyes. Damn my weakness for cute things. "Fine. I'll go."
Cheering, he took Takashi's arm and raced for the door. Waving, he called out, "See you tomorrow night, Aki-chan!"
Staring at the closed door, Haruhi looked at me with a reassuring look. "Everything will be fine senpai. Things will work out with the twins."
Feeling a worried sensation deep down in my gut, I glanced down at the stuffed rabbit while toying with the long ears. I sure hope you're right Haruhi.
Sounds of talking, music, and laughter filled the Hitachiin property on the night of the big party. The whole mansion seemed to be in a buzz for the celebration of the twins' seventeenth year of life. Except for family, there were very few guys attending the party as opposed to the many fan-girls who were invited to attend. It seemed like truck-loads of presents in the shape of a mountain were piled up inside—all from loved ones and close friends. Lights emitting from the area were so intense that barely any stars were even visible in the night sky. Nonetheless, there was definitely a cheery atmosphere in the air making anyone who even went near the celebration to feel instantly happy.
Except me.
Instead of going inside and enjoying the party, I avoided everyone—after separating with Haruhi—by going into the extremely gigantic (darn rich people), yet beautiful garden in the back of the mansion. Getting far enough from everyone that I possible could, I finally ended up in front of an area with a large white gazebo. Sitting on the steps with Usa-chan in my hands, I thought about some things. Shifting in my new dress, I mentally thanked Tamaki for thinking of me. It was a real beautiful gown—a strapless, pleated cerulean dress with glitter at the chest area, hugging my waist while the pleated skirt flowed all the way down to the floor, complimented with silver strap pumps. If I had absolutely anything to say about the rich, it's that they don't mess around when it comes to fashion. After all, they're the ones who have the fashion police on speed dial.
Getting the focus off of the amazing dress, I continued to play around with the bunny—eye to plastic eye. Feelings of confusion raced throughout my heart and body. I felt some comfort with Usa-chan there (cute things are always appreciated), but it wasn't what I needed. Part of me knew that Mitsukuni, Takashi, and Haruhi were right—that I should just go straight into that building and fix this whole ugly mess. The other part told me that I should keep giving the source(s) of my trouble the cold shoulder. Both of the conflicting ideas collided to give me one hell of a headache. I couldn't exactly tell what I was felling at that moment. Anger? Not sure. Sadness? Not quite. A whole load of jumbled up emotions? Bingo. I mean, I have every right to be angry at them (him)—they (he) totally went against my trust—the trust that took a good long while for them (him) to even earn. Considering my history with people, this whole thing shouldn't have hit me as hard as it did. As far as I was concerned, I was completely desensitized to things like this. It turns out, though, that I wasn't prepared for everything—especially when this certain "thing" involved people (someone) close to me. Are they (he) still close to me? I chuckled slightly. Of course they—oh, who am I kidding? Of course he's important to me. Even if he only saw me as a toy?
I truly was pathetic. I couldn't even hate someone properly.
Hearing footsteps behind me, I turned quickly to see a very pretty woman with short, styled light red hair, wearing a long, elegant one-shoulder white gown. She had a rather smug look on her face and her eyes, although sharp, were the same golden shade as Hikaru and Kaoru's.
"Feeling lonely out here?" She asked with a silky voice.
"No, I'm fine," I told her. Holding up Usa-can, I said, "I have company."
She laughed. "As much as a cute stuffed bunny may be, you still can't get the full human experience without humans."
"Thanks miss, but I'm completely content with things as they are right now."
Laughing slyly once more, I realized that the aura around her felt very familiar. "Content huh? Well the story I here is that you and my sons didn't leave on the best of terms a couple of days ago." Sons? Noticing her smirk, I groaned. Now that I think about it, she gives off almost the exact same vibe as Hikaru and Kaoru. No freakin' wonder. "I came home all giddy for getting to see my sons again. But the moment I arrive, they are depressed and make a sad attempt at acting like themselves. They may think that I don't pay them enough attention, but I know those two better than they think I do."
Refusing to give a real answer, all I did was scoff, roll my eyes, and say, "Fascinating."
Hearing how I amused her, she continued to smile. "Well, you certainly are a hospitable young girl. My boys warned me that you may bite. Your name is Akimoto Tsubaki, right?" I nodded. "Well, I'm Yuzuha Hitachiin, Kaoru and Hikaru's mother."
"Of course you are," I said out of her hearing range.
"Being such a big-name fashion designer, I'm not able to be with the boys as much as I would like. So when I heard about how that Host Club has been keeping them company, it was like a huge weight had been lifted off of my shoulders." What a great mother. Dumping her kids on a group of narcissist weirdoes. Her voice lost some of its joy as she put on a guilty face. "Don't get me wrong—I love my boys very much. They mean the world to me and it hurts knowing that I wasn't there for them enough while they were growing up. But it makes waking up each day easier for me to know that they have those people there to grow up with him and have fun with."
"Huh." Maybe she is a good mom after all. If she's faking it…then I can't tell at all.
"They've told me a lot about that nice Haruhi girl." My face fell. Of course they did. "But they told me even more about you." Eyes widening, I looked at her more intensely.
"Really?"
"Yup. A lot of interesting things…"
Like my magic? Or…how I'm the newest toy of theirs? Curiosity burning, I tried to ask, "What kinds of—"
"Now I don't know everything that happened between you guys, I believe that it's none of my business, but I do know that you have something good going for you. So don't let it be ruined just because my sons, or Hikaru, were acting like idiots." Turning and walking towards the party, she chimed in a few last words, "It's always more fun to be happy. You should try giving your happiness a chance, right?"
At that, someone's hand came from behind and onto my shoulder. Going into defensive mode, I shot my body up and away from the stairs to the gazebo…only to be staring into the eyes of Hikaru himself.
Relaxing myself, I stood there finding some other place to look at than into his eyes. "Congratulations. You managed to sneak up on me." When I thought about walking—or better yet, flying off, he started to speak.
"I think we need to talk."
"Yeah, well, I'm not ready to talk just yet." I told him bitterly.
"Aki—"
"You know…the thing that irks me at the moment is that send your mother after me first. Real mature."
"Aki!" He shouted. "Can you, for once in your life, try and listen to what people have to say to you? You always try and dominate the conversation to get your point across. All I'm asking is that you skip that banter you love to do and just listen to me." Stunned by his boldness, I decided to hear him out. "It took a lot of guts and pushing by the other Hosts to come out here and talk to you. So here it is: I am really sorry about that whole tracking thing. It gave you the wrong impression and seemed to mess up everything."
"Then why do it Hikaru? What reason other than making me your pet could you have possibly in mind?" My voice started to increase in volume. "I told you about the social situation that I had grown up in. I told you how I felt about friendship, and you went and did something like that. How can I possibly trust you?"
"Maybe 'cause I'm your friend? We did have a lot of fun times, the three of us. With the jokes, and the pranks, and the laughs—"
"Yeah, you guys had those things. At my expense. You know, this whole time, I never really felt like my own person. Even with the awesome feeling of flying, I never had the chance to be free. Because of you and Kaoru, I felt like some bird in a cage. I didn't leave home to be trapped by people who I thought were my friends—"
"We are your friends—"
"No you're not! What kind of friend would fool a friend into thinking she was actually an important part of their lives when actually, they were tracking me for sport?"
"The same friend who doesn't want you to leave!"
My heart suddenly skipped a beat at the sound of those words. "What?"
He sighed and looked away, his face starting to turn pink. "The other day at the festival, you said that you could potentially leave at any time and that we would all forget about you. I hated the thought of me being helpless about it, so I figured that if I always knew where you were at, then I'd always know that you were still here…with me." Feeling my face heat up, my mind became chaotic and uncontrollable. Dizziness began to befall me, and I had no idea what to do. "I was scared, I guess, so I did something stupid." No matter how much I wanted to speak, I just couldn't form the right words to speak properly—my heart just kept racing. Hikaru started to get angry. "This is so stupid! If you didn't want to leave, couldn't you just stop it? It feels bad knowing that any one of these days, you could be out of our lives. The Host Club would be nothing without you. But you probably wouldn't even care, right? This whole time, you've been acting like you hated being with us. Is it true? "
Starting to snap out of the trance, I shook my head feverishly. "No…I don't hate being with you guys. I…I don't hate being here." I can't believe it...He had done all of that just to get me to stay. I can't believe how wrong I was about him. And yet...all of this could be lie... Still thinking, I looked back on the day I woke up in the bed in the mansion. Since that day, I've been made to think that I had friends for life and I didn't even realize it. My mind kept telling me that I'd just end up hurt again, that I couldn't trust anyone. Believing that completely clouded my judgement and my heart. The truth is that I'll probably still keep thinking in that manner...it's how I grew up after all, but maybe I could take a chance on this whole "trusting others" thing. You know, just to see what it's like...It'll take time, but...I'll work on it, little by little.
"Look, after all that, I wouldn't be surprised if you did want to leave. Just…go." He turned to walk away. In an instant, I ran up to him and grabbed his hand.
"I'm not going anywhere!"
"What reason do you have to stay?"
"You! I care about you too much to even think about leaving." Realizing what I said, I ignored the intense beating of my heart and extended my arm up and around his neck, closing the distance between us while bringing his face down to mine. Without another word, our lips met. Relaxing into it a bit, he managed to return the kiss and wrap his arms around my waist, lifting me up to match his height better on the steps. Parting our lips, the kiss deepened as he brought our bodies even closer together. My whole body tingled at how amazingly soft his lips were. When we finally broke, his eyes opened followed by a wide smile.
"I win." He said with a twinkle in his eye.
I gave a puzzled look. "Win what?"
"Weren't we playing 'who can act the most like a drama queen while admitting our feelings'? I figured that my performance was pretty good."
Realizing what he was saying, my jaw dropped. "Dammit Hikaru! You tricked me! I thought that you're whole speech was a tad too dramatic for your style."
"I got you to kiss me didn't I? By the way, that was the sweetest first kiss ever." He winked. Seeing annoyance in my eyes, he chuckled before his face softened. "I meant what I said though, I really don't want you to leave Aki. You're too important to me."
"You, or you and Kaoru?"
"Well, Kaoru does too, but I have a feeling that I care just a bit more." Our foreheads rested against each other's.
Face still feeling warm, I smiled. "I really don't want to leave. Out of all the places I've been to , I think I like this one the most."
"You think?" His lips got close to mine.
I nodded. "Yeah…" Silencing me with another kiss, I couldn't help but thank the universe for letting me have this moment.
Quickly separating, he lowered me back onto the bottom step I was on then took my hand.
"Want to go to the party now? You're gonna miss the best part if we don't hurry." You mean it gets better?
Feeling slightly nervous to go to a party full of people, I reluctantly nodded. "Sure."
Thank you, Hikaru. I know you said that that whole thing was just a game, that you were pretending to be that upset. But I have a feeling that you meant everything that you said. Even the greatest of actors could never show the emotions I saw blazing in those eyes of yours. I'm happy that you let me see the real you other than the jokester you.
Reaching the front doors to the mansion, hand in hand—and Usa-chan in the other—they were suddenly opened by the twin maids. "Welcome back sir and mademoiselle." They said simultaneously. The moment we walked in, a colorful assortment of confetti and balloons rained down from above followed by a bunch of people clapping and cheering. In all of the confusion, I didn't realize quickly enough that I was no longer holding Hikaru's hand. When everything cleared, I lifted my hand to my face to realize that Hikaru had been replaced with a microphone.
Confused, I looked around until I saw the whole Host Club, twins included, all standing in front of an elevated and circular platform with smiles on their faces.
"What the hell?"
Mitsukuni skipped up to me and took Usa-chan. "Thanks for taking care of Usa-chan. I hope he helped you feel better."
"Umm…he did but what—"
"I can't wait to hear it Aki-chan!"
"Hear what?"
He ran back to the others who stood there watching me, as well as the hundreds of people in the room.
The twins stepped forward. "In honor of our birthday—"
"—we request that the commoner, Aki, who doesn't have the money to buy us a present, sing us a song."
"A nice one too."
A…song? Wait a sec…that's not just a circular platform, that's a stage!
"What the hell, Hikaru!"
Kaoru spoke up with the same smug on his face. "We just wanted to save the best gift for last."
"Yeah, there's no harm in that!"
"What makes you two idiots think that I could sing?" I shouted.
They wrapped their arms around each other's waists. "We hear you singing on that day you woke up."
"Instead of recording it and watching it over and over again on our phones," Bastards, "we wanted our own personal concert. So, what do you say?"
Walking up to them, I tried to ignore all of the muffled talking and stares surrounding me. That's when Mrs. Hitachiin came out from the crowd and patted my head.
"Thanks for doing this." Smiling warmly, she added, "Just remember to have fun."
Nodding reluctantly, I shot pretty much all of them a dirty look as I walked up the steps, in the middle of almost-blinding spotlights. The crowd suddenly surrounded the stage in a mob just waiting for the show. Sighing, I thought to myself, might as well.
With the sound of drumsticks starting a beat, catchy pop music began to play.
"I don't want to make a scene,
I don't want to let you down.
Try to do my own thing,
And I'm starting to figure it out
Cause it's…Alright keep it together
Wherever we go,
And it's alright
Oh well, whatever!
Everybody needs to know," Pointing to the twins, I sang out,
"You might be crazy
But have I told you lately
That I love you?
You're the only reason that I'm
Not afraid to fly, and it's
Crazy that someone could change me
Now no matter
What it is I have to do
I'm not afraid to try
And you need to know that
You're the reason why!"
"She's simply magnificent Haruhi! You think that I could get an autograph from her?" I heard Tamaki shout out.
Haruhi gave him a "what's the point" look. "Senpai...you see her almost every day. You don't need an autograph."
Kyouya had his own agenda as he pushed up his glasses. "Autographs may actually be a good idea. The ladies would go crazy over them."
Rolling my eyes and signaling to the whole Host Club, I continued the song,
"I don't even care when
They say you're a little bit off.
Look me in the eye I say,
'I can't get enough!'
Cause it's alright,
Keep it together,
Wherever we go, and it's
Alright, oh well, whatever!
Everybody needs to know,
You might be crazy,
But have I told you lately,
That I love you?
You're the only reason that I'm
Not afraid to fly
And it's crazy
That someone could change me
Now no matter
What it is I have to do I'm
Not afraid to try.
And you need to know that
You're the reason why."
Walking off the stage, I stood in front of the twins with my own version of a conniving smile. And I thought that mine beat theirs by a long-shot.
"If it was raining,
You would yell at the sun.
Pick up the pieces when
The damage is done.
You say it's just another
Day in the shade.
Look at what a mess we've made." I winked at them. That's right I'm talking about you guys.
"You might be crazy
But have I told you lately,
That I love you?
You're the only reason that
I'm not afraid to fly
And it's crazy
That someone could change me
Now no matter what it is
I have to do I'm not afraid to try.
And you need to know that," I put my arms around the two.
"You're the reason why!"
When the party ended, confetti still littered the whole floor of the ballroom. Echoes of the cheers people gave me for the song still rang in my ears. The incredible feeling of people appreciating and liking what I'd done still lingered deep inside. I always loved to sing—it relieved stress—but I never thought that I'd actually be good at it.
The Host Club stood in the middle of the room, reminiscing the fun night, before they themselves made their separate ways home.
At a time that I didn't expect it, the twins came by and looped their arms around mine in that familiar fashion of theirs. "So Aki," Kaoru began, "Hikaru tells us that you're a couple now. Is that true?"
Blushing a little—especially in front of the whole club—I nodded. "Yeah, I guess."
That was when the rest of the club stared for a moment before giving us their blessings with smiles. Feeling embarrassed, I looked down.
Facing each other, the twins gave devilish grins. "Say, Hikaru, since you and Aki are together, what are we gonna do about our act?"
"Don't worry about that my dear Kaoru. You and I are bonded by blood and love. No one can come in between that. I'll make sure that we're always together."
"Oh, Hikaru—"
"You two aren't seriously doing this with me in the middle!" I roared, which earned me snickers from the two jokesters.
Seeing Haruhi smiling at us, Hikaru asked, "Hey Haruhi, we're going to bed soon. You think that you and Aki would like to join us?"
Without hesitating, she waved her hand in front of her face wildly. "No thanks. I prefer my own bed."
Totally surprising myself and everyone else, I said, "Okay."
This time everyone, including the twins, just stared for the longest time.
Laughing I tried to get them to unfreeze. "Oh, come on! You guys have been trying to get me to sleep in the same bed as you two for the longest time. I figured that there's no harm in it as long as you two don't pull anything that would force my hand to 'slip' and burn you."
Still shocked, it took a few seconds for Hikaru and Kaoru to blink a few times, followed by cheers. "Finally! We broke Aki!"
"You didn't break me. I'm just a little more open minded tonight. And once again, since I can't stress this enough, absolutely no funny business, or else."
Haruhi, being the third to regain her shock, walked up to me and put a hand on my shoulder with a serious look on her face. "Senpai, you are by far the bravest person I have ever met."
The room was mostly dark except for the bright full moon that shone through the tall windows. Kaoru and Hikaru lied on both sides of me, each with the biggest smiles on their faces. The bed was very soft and comfortable, and, oddly, I didn't feel weird about being there. I was among friends and that alone was the best feeling in the world.
"Thanks for being my friend you guys—even at first when I didn't accept your friendship. I was a complete idiot and should have given you more of a chance."
"Glad to do it." They both said. "And we forgave you a long time ago."
"Oh, and thank you Kaoru for talking to Hikaru for me before tonight. Whatever you told him, it worked." I smirked a little.
Hikaru sat up. "What makes you think that Kaoru gave me advice?"
Kaoru shifted his body to face inwards towards me while leaning his head on his hand. "Because I did." Even though it was too dark to tell, I knew that Hikaru was blushing from what his brother just revealed.
"Hey Aki, you know those 'hundreds of videos' we told you about when we met?" Hikaru asked with a slight amount of slyness in his voice.
"…Ye…ah…" I cocked my eyebrow up.
"Totally nonexistent." Resisting the urge to sit up and bash them to bits, all I did was sigh—centering myself from completely lashing at them. Seriously? That was a trick too? Gosh, what is wrong with these guys?
"Hikaru! You weren't supposed to tell her that!"
He chuckled. "It's okay! She's not going anywhere."
Sighing again, I waited until the two finished their conversation and Hikaru lied back down. Well, whatever is wrong with them, I'm glad it is. Because if these two weren't the ones I met when first arriving here, I can't even imagine what things would be like right now. A small smile began to play on my lips. You know...I don't really care to find out. "You guys are incredible chumps, you know that?" Feeling both of their warm arms cover me, we snuggled closer making me feel warmer than I had in a long time. "But you're right. I'm staying right here."
The song used is called "You're the Reason" by Victoria Justice.
ATTENTION READERS: This is the Beta version of LH5W, if you want to read the official, updated version of the story, you'll have to go over to DeviantArt. com and head on over to my page. My username is Aloubell. You can also get there by going to my fanfiction. net profile which provides a link over there.
In any case, this Beta version is basically the rough draft of LH5W, my first attempt at it. Much of the plot points from this version will be the same in the official version, but there are significant and consistent characterization changes, a few (but very important) plot differences, expansion of past ideas, and overall better quality in storytelling.
All of this will be done over on DeviantArt. I no longer will write the story in traditional prose nor submit/update it here to fanfiction. net. The Beta version will remain here, just know that it isn't the 100% official story.
The official version will be written in a lazy prose mixed with play-writing elements (you'll get what I mean when you see it).
This is the new format for the story from now on.
So please head on over there if you're interested in updates to the story! Thank you for stopping by =D
-Aloe
PLEASE NOTE: The official version is being written somewhat out of order. The official version will start on chapter 46, the place where the Beta version left off. The official version will go on to complete the last chapters of Season 2. Once those are done, I will redo the story over again from Chapter 1 which will be the official version.
Having said that, if you choose to continue on reading, I hope you enjoy the Beta version and look forward to the official!