"People cry not because they're weak, but because they've been strong for too long."
December 16, 2014
"What the hell are you guys doing here!?" Akiko snapped, glaring as she placed a hand on her hip. Her gray eyes were furious, narrowed as she scowled. "Go home!"
"We think not!" The twins snapped, sending her both looks. Akiko ground her teeth together and stood up straighter, standing on her toes as she glared up at them. "We want to see Alex!"
"Well, too bad! You aren't going to see her any time soon!" Akiko replied, frowning deeply. I'm not sure if the twins know or not, but seeing that they live together they might. I don't want to risk it. "Besides, she's busy!"
Hikaru and Kaoru looked skeptical and demanded, "How so?"
"She's working!"
"Working on what?" The twins never got their answer as Tamaki suddenly ran up and pushed them out of the way, reaching forward and grabbing Akiko's hands as he smiled down at her charmingly.
"My darling princess, please do forgive our interruption. But we are looking our friend, Haruhi. Have you seen-"
"I'm sorry, but please don't try that Host crap on me. I do know Haruhi's secret, remember dumbass?" She cut in, watching as Tamaki turned to stone and began to sulk in a corner. The dark-haired girl sighed and ran a hand through her neatly cut bangs, which now went across her forehead instead of being parted in the middle. Hikaru noticed the change and asked in a dull tone,
"What's with the new hair style? Finally realize how weird you looked and decided to make a change?"
A vein popped on Akiko's forehead and she growled, "Nooo, this is how I normally look when I'm not at school! Now please excuse me while I go to fetch the laundry that your stupid helicopter made fly away!" She whirled around and stormed off, but not before turning her head and pointing a finger at them and shouting, "And don't you dare go looking for Alex!" She disappeared from view.
Mitsukuni commented with a pout, "Aki-Chan is in a very bad mood today, Takashi. Don't you agree?"
"...Yeah."
Kyoya stared at Tamaki's mushroom-growing form, his eyes hidden behind his glasses. He said, "Tamaki, are you going to sit there all day or are we going to find Haruhi and Alex?"
A effeminate voice suddenly cried out, "Oh my! Did you say Haruhi and Alex?" They turned their heads to see a man, at least they think it was a man, about forty wearing make-up with long auburn hair held back by a head band. He wore a red dress with a yellow apron on top. "You dashing hunks must belong to my cute little workers!" He looked like he wanted to say more but held back, the blush on his face seeming more prominent than before as he quickly ushered the Host Club's male members into the Inn.
Everyone except Kyoya looked startled, and the Shadow King calmly explained, "He's an old friend of Ranka's. They used to work at the same shop together years ago." Tamaki looked annoyed.
"Well, naturally you would know." Tamaki barely saw it, but he saw a flash of anger in Kyoya's usually calm and collected eyes. "...Kyoya?"
The Shadow King pushed up his glasses, crossing his arms over his chest casually. It was almost difficult to detect, but there was a dark aura forming around him, held back by a well-controlled temper. Kyoya was an expert at putting on a facade, and it was normally not too much of a hassle to do, but Kyoya was currently holding back the urge to break something-to storm this place down with his family's police squad of one hundred officers and hunt down Alex, to demand answers and find out what she was hiding from him.
Kyoya did not like being put in the dark, and Tamaki's words just worsened his mood. Kyoya always knew what was happening and who-was-who and if something was wrong with that person, but Alex... Only she had managed to escape him, to wriggle herself out of his hold. She was distancing herself from him and he wanted to know why.
Did I do something wrong? He always wondered and now he was left pondering the thought if she no longer cared about him. No. No, that's it. It couldn't be it. What if she was playing him all along, for some little scheme she had put in her head? He was an Ootori after all, but that wouldn't make sense for her. She wasn't of this world. There was absolutely no way in hell she was lying to me about that. Her behavior from the beginning adds it all up together. There was no possible way she was from this..."dimension", as she calls it. Alex was clever, but not a genius. Suddenly a thought hit him, and he found himself completely ignoring Misuzu's speech about how he made a place for himself two years ago.
Is she depressed? Home-sickness was a common thing, and could lead to depression after a long while of not seeing one's family. It had been almost a total year since Alex arrived at Ouran, since she first ran into the Hitachiin brothers. Knowing that there was no way for her to get home, surely that must be why she was avoiding him-a stupid idea of her's made its way into her head and started to make her thing that by avoiding him she could get better. The moron.
"Oh, Akiko~! Where are you? Ah, come over here!" Akiko wasn't able to protest as Misuzu reached over and grabbed the girl by her shoulders, pulling her in front of him and shaking her back-and-forth like a bobble head. "Just look at this apron she's wearing; I made it myself! Isn't she completely adorable in it? Haruhi's wearing a matching one as well! Alex refused to wear one...then again, it's not like she could." That caught Kyoya's attention, and the embarrassed blush disappeared from Akiko's face as she raised a hand up and clamped it over Misuzu's mouth, hissing at him to shut up.
"Really?" Kyoya asked, sounding like he would if he was asking a question about the weather, "Why not?"
"Because she's taking a shower right now!" Akiko snapped, Kyoya narrowing his eyes at the obvious lie. However, instead of interrogating her he smiled and said,
"Oh, is that so? I assume she'll be down when she's done then? She must help around the Inn-Alex isn't one to let people do all the work by themselves, lazy she may be at times." Sweat beaded down Akiko's face, and even Misuzu looked a little nervous. Hikaru and Kaoru looked at each other, both looking solemn, before shooting forward and tackling Akiko, causing the girl to let out a scream.
"G-Get off of me!"
Kaoru said quickly, "Don't be so mean to her, Kyoya-Sempai!"
"Y-Yeah! She's very obviously overworked! Just look at how she's sweating!" Hikaru offered an awkward yet pained grin as he reached over and pinched the girl's cheek painfully, causing tears to well up in her eyes as she struggled in their hold.
Mitsukuni looked horrified, ready to cry himself as he ran over to Akiko. Usa-Chan was held tightly to his side as he grabbed a piece of Akiko's apron, crying out, "No! Aki-Chan can't be overworked! That's not good for her health!"
Mori said nothing, merely standing there and watching the scene unfold.
Misuzu said indignantly, stopping Tamaki just in time to avoid a rant as he held a hand up to stop the madness, "Now just you hold on a moment! I do not overwork my helpers, despite them working for free! How dare you insinuate such a thing? Alex, the poor thing, just happened to catch a cold today and is in one of the guest rooms getting better. I do not want to hear you fussing about. She is to be left alone until she is better and not disturbed. Haruhi, the dear that she is, and Akiko have been helping me care for her as well as helping about my little Inn. If I find out that one of you boys, the twins not included seeing as they are related, are not allowed to visit her! Am I clear?"
As Misuzu spoke, his voice deepened and he started to sound like a father scolding his child, as if trying to protect them from harm despite the poor decision it was to his opinion.
After a moment, Tamaki spoke in confusion, "Wait a minute... why are Haruhi and the other two girls even here?" Akiko gained a tick mark at being spoken about as though she wasn't even there. She held her tongue however, and finally managed to push the twins off of her. "You said they were working for free, so..."
"Th-That means they're not indentured servants?" Mitsukuni finished, not releasing his arms from around Akiko's waist. The teenager quietly pat the boy on the head, watching the scene almost as silently as Mori.
"Ranka wanted me to watch over his darling daughter, saying "put my little girl under your wing"! He practically begged me, and after Haruhi invited Alex and Akiko along...well, I just couldn't refuse! Though I am still worried..." His voice lowered to the point where they just barely heard him, but he brightened and held his arms out to his side, exclaiming loudly and happily, "And since I still can't afford the desired help, it works out for everyone! They're such model employees; it's a shame I can't pay them anything!"
Akiko scoffed, and without even thinking about it picked Mitsukuni up and held him like she would a five-year-old, the surprised teen wrapping his arms around her neck and his legs around her waist. Usa-Chan was held by his arm, resting against Akiko's back. Mitsukuni was surprisingly light. "I'm rich, Misuzu. Even if you did have money to pay us, I wouldn't take any." Misuzu laughed.
"Oh, don't be that way! It's only right that you'd have earned it!" Akiko sighed.
"Whatever." Mitsukuni blinked and looked up at Akiko with his child-like, but adult-like intelligent eyes. Being this close to her he could see the muscles in her face move, and the slight down-turn of her eyes. She was sad, despite what her tough I-don't-care attitude was saying. Everyone is sad... He noted, remembering the looks on Hikaru and Kaoru's faces, and the way Misuzu appeared to be putting on a strong front. Kyoya kept switching back-and-forth from his Host facade and his Shadow King persona, his emotions conflicting with his mind and the way he usually appeared outside. Kaoru looked like he was holding back tears, Hikaru seemed like he was about to snap every time someone mentioned Alex, and Akiko...
She looked like she was going to run and hide, like she wanted to escape reality and never revisit.
Takashi's sad too, Mitsukuni noted, and rested his head against Akiko's shoulder and closed his eyes. Mitsukuni could tell that something was gravely wrong with Alex's health condition, and he knew his cousin could as well. Tamaki had no clue, and Kyoya...he was the smartest one of them all, the one who notices everything and anything without a single mistake in his calculations, and yet... He's the most oblivious of us all. Even Tama-Chan knows that Alex is sick, he just doesn't know how bad. Kyo-Chan knows she sick, he knows she's hiding something, but he's going about it the wrong way.
Mitsukuni slowly opened his eyes, watching as Haruhi finally made an appearance and started to descend down the stairs. He felt Akiko kneel down and he took that as the cue to release her, his feet touching the ground as she set him down. Akiko stood up straight, mumbling about going to the kitchen, and Tamaki instantly ran forward to tackle Haruhi, hugging her to him as though in fear that she had vanished from his life.
To his surprise she didn't argue, a sorrowful look in her eyes. Tamaki had probably noticed it, and without asking about it just hugged her, knowing that was what she needed most at that moment. It lasted only a few seconds before Haruhi regained her composure and gave Tamaki a look, causing him to pale and start growing mushrooms in another corner.
"Ah, Haruhi!" Misuzu finally noticed and clapped his hands together happily, before asking, "How is she?" Haruhi paused, taking note of everyone else in the room, before stating bluntly,
"The same as usual. I don't think she'll be able to walk without causing a fit. I just finished giving her lunch." Misuzu appeared slightly more disheartened.
"I see... Well, thank you for checking up on her. I'm sure she appreciates the company."
Kyoya's glasses glared against the light of the room, and he quickly closed the black book her was writing in. He'd have to follow either Haruhi or the twins to Alex's guest room if he wanted to speak to her, otherwise he'll get lectured by Misuzu and he wanted to stay on as good terms with him as possible. For all he knew it could be beneficial to be on his good side in the future. I can't let my emotions get the better of me. I need to remain calm. But calm was slowly becoming a foreign word to Kyoya, who seemed to be throwing fits every other month. His knuckles were now bruised from when he punched a table earlier.
"...Yeah." Haruhi agreed. Tamaki frowned and removed himself from his corner, questioning,
"Is she that sick?" Something seemed to flicker in his blue eyes. A painful memory appearing in his head, and a memory of Haruhi's that she once shared with him. He turned his head to look at the brunette, worry pricking at him. "Is it really just a cold?"
Akiko walked out of the kitchen, scowling, "Of course it's just a cold, blondie. What else would it be? If you don't believe me, go check up on her yourself." She was just saying that to get them to drop the subject about the brunette, trying to use to reverse psychology on them.
Before Kyoya could stop himself he placed a hand on Tamaki's shoulder, saying with a very noticeable aura surrounding him, "Let me come with you." He gave a shit-eating grin as darkness threatened to take over the whole room, suffocating everyone with the held-back rage. "I want to make sure she is alright as well." He saw through Akiko's plan, the dark-haired girl scowling.
Misuzu gave another dark look. "I already said you can not. Hikaru, Kaoru..." He turned to look at the twins, who were startled that he knew their names. "If either of you wish to visit Alex, her room number is one twelve. If I hear about any of you in Alex's rooms that do not have my permission..." He narrowed his eyes, letting the threat linger for their minds to pick up and figure out what would happen. He suddenly smiled, a cheerful aura bubbling around him as he clapped his hands together again. "Well, anyway, you're allowed to stay here regardless if you wish, though... Oh dear. I'm sorry. I just remembered we only have one vacant room left."
Haruhi quickly cut in, sharing a look with Akiko, "That's fine. They were leaving anyway."
"Actually," Tamaki said smoothly, smiling as he lifted a hand to his chin. "Karuizawa sounds wonderful, and I quite like what I've seen of Pension Misuzu."
"Yeah!" Mitsukuni agreed, "And Karuizawa is so nice and pretty! Right, Takashi?" The giant nodded his head. Kyoya commented, pushing up his glasses,
"Overseas travelling is rather exhausting."
Kaoru spoke first, saying, "And since Alex is here, we're staying here."
"And nothing is going to change our minds!" Hikaru finished. They slung their arms around Haruhi's shoulders, who paled. Hikaru cast a quick glance to Akiko, who was shaking. He raised an eyebrow but paid to no mind, not caring much about what was going on with her. Alex isn't going to leave us. She can't. She won't. He refused to let her. "And since we're her brothers,"
"We get to stay in the vacant room."
"We won't let anyone else take that room!" Kyoya's eyes darkened, and everyone felt a chill go down their spines. "...Not even you, Kyoya-Sempai."
He quickly gave a smile and said with closed eyes, "I never said I was participating for the room, did I? No, why do such a childish act? I have a cottage nearby, anyhow."
The twins looked at each other from the corner of their eyes.
Hikaru suggested, his voice on the border of cold, "Here's an idea. Kaoru and I bet you'll like it. How about a little competition?"
"We'll call it "Guest Relations Odd-Jobs Conquest for Pension Misuzu"." Kaoru explained.
"It's very simple; we all just lend a hand around the place this afternoon,"
"-and whoever makes the best impression on Misuzu-Chii gets the vacant guest bedroom."
And the one who'll get the vacant guest room... will be us. Hikaru and Kaoru refused to lose.
Misuzu quickly interrupted, stars in his eyes, "I like it! I think it's an absolutely wonderful idea!" Haruhi and Akiko quickly left to mope in the corner, "Yes! The winner of the competition will be decided by how refreshing they are! Remember, refreshing is the name of the game in Guest Relations!" Misuzu pointed and grinned at them all, "Now don't think this is going to be a walk in the park. I plan on working you boys to the bone!"
Hikaru was left to collect trash from the rooms while Kaoru went outside to sweep the patio and deck. He had two trashbags full at this point, and was merely fueled by the fire of keeping his sibling alive. He may have not done much housework at all in his life, but if he could just keep an eye on her... Damn it all! Hikaru ground his teeth together and cursed out loud, dragging the heavy trashbags with him across the hallway.
He stopped in front of a door and set the bags down, knocking a couple of times and waiting for someone to answer. Annoyance pricked at him and he knocked again, and when nobody answered he scowled and opened the door himself, slightly surprised at the knowledge of it being unlocked. He made to walk into the room, but one step in he lifted his head up and froze, his blood going cold.
Lying in the bed was Alex, sweating bullets and pale as death. Above her was...Alex. O-Or, at least a girl who looked like Alex, with choppy bangs and shorter hair. She was kneeling on Alex's bed with a hand resting over the girl's chest, right where her heart should be, and was whispering something.
Something about it "not being time" and "she would have to wait just a little longer". The girl's glasses nearly fell off of her nose, and when she lifted her head up she tensed, a smile spreading across her face and stretching the scar that went across her jawline.
Hikaru's heart stopped beating for a split moment, staring into those familiar yet completely alien eyes. The figure was transparent, like it was but wasn't there, and when he blinked the girl was suddenly gone, and Alex was left writhing in pain and gasping, coughing harshly. Without even thinking about it he dashed over to her and ran a hand against her cheek, alarmed at how her skin was practically burning-like it was on fire. She wheezed and coughed, and Hikaru wanted to curse-to kill god or nature or whatever did this to her.
He wasn't about to lose one of the people who broke into his and his brother's world. Someone who managed to become something like family to him. He...He couldn't. He couldn't lose her.
"Alex, Alex, calm-calm down. B-Breathe!"
She gasped, and Hikaru noticed how bad she looked. She was only in Karuizawa for a week, and he knows for a fact that she was eating and yet it appears that she lost multiple pounds. She almost looked like she hadn't eaten in weeks. "Alex?" She stopped breathing for a moment and Hikaru felt like he was going to break. He shakily raised a hand to her neck, and choked on air when he felt a faint heartbeat. His legs felt like they were going to give out. After a few moments her chest started to rise and fall slowly, and he fell to his knees.
Sh-She's okay... She's okay, she's okay, she's okay... He tried to hold back the tears but they just didn't want to go away. His lips curled back and his whole body trembled, his hand reaching out and grabbing hers tightly, but not so tightly for fear that her fragile limb would break and snap into tiny little pieces. He felt like if he made the wrong move he would never see her again. She's okay... He swallowed thickly, inhaling through his nose deeply as he reached his other hand up and started to wipe away the tears.
Alex coughed again and shifted, her eyes opening groggily. She looked exhausted, defeated, worn... "H-Hika-" She went into a barrage of coughs, painfully raising an arm up to cover her mouth. Blood splattered against her hand and Hikaru flinched, standing up and grabbing a bunch of tissues that were on the nightstand beside her. She reached out to grab them but Hikaru quickly stopped her, cleaning the blood off for her.
She was about to protest but bit her tongue, tired of seeming helpless but knowing that she probably couldn't do it herself. After a few moments she smiled, asking with a raspy voice, "What's the matter, Hikaru? G-Get in a fight with Kaoru?"
Hikaru lowered his head, and a breeze blew into the room from the open window. "It's not... It's not that..." Damn it. Hikaru could barely talk without choking up. He stood up, refusing to look at her. "I...I came to pick up the trash. I got the trash now, see?" He held up the red napkin, his back facing her. She turned her head and stared at him, her smile faltering just a little. "I..I'm going now. S-See you later."
She watched him leave the room, closing the door behind him. It was only when she was certain he was gone that her smile fell and she found herself trying to hold back her own tears. "Y-yeah... See you later, H-Hikaru." S-She would...
Alex turned onto her side, curling into a ball and burying herself underneath the blankets as she coughed again, wheezing as she tried to breathe. I-I'll see you later... I'll see you later. I'll another day. I will... She tried not to cry, to hold back the tears, but they seemed unwilling to listen and fell against her wishes.
Piano music suddenly began to play, and Alex found herself relaxing as a small peaceful smile formed on her lips, the pleasant and beautiful sound almost lulling her into sleep. Her eyes caught sight of her phone, and she tiredly reached an arm out to grab it.
Akiko shifted the laundry basket, cursing the sun for glaring down at her. She hated having her black hair, it just made her a target for sunlight. It amazed her to no end at how well Tamaki could play the piano, something she just found out from Kyoya a little while ago. She spoke to Haruhi about what they were going to do about Alex's secret, seeing how the entire club was here, but decided to just let things play out.
It would no doubt be an end to all their summer vacations if word got out. Haruhi only found out a few days before vacation started, and Akiko heard the news when Haruhi invited her to stay at Pension Misuzu with her in order to keep a better eye on Alex. That girl's such an idiot... she thought, biting the inside of her cheek. She let out a sigh and walked towards the front yard, only to pause when she saw a twin by his lonesome. To her surprise it was Kaoru instead of Hikaru, the one whom she thought would be moping and yelling at himself for the stupidest things.
She didn't know much about Hikaru, or even Kaoru for that matter, but it was easy to tell who the calm twin was and who the angry brother is. She deducted Hikaru as a Tsundere. Akiko was an Otaku after all, and did fangirl over many things so it was plainly obvious that she could guess persons sterotypes. Her theory of him being that of a Tsundere was proven when he helped her out at the commoners market a few months back.
Akiko hung her head and groaned, hating herself for what she was about to do, before plopping the tub of clothes down and heading towards the steps with crossed arms. Kaoru snapped out of his thoughts and watched her curiously, surprised to see her heading over to him.
"Where's your mess of a brother?" She asked, raising an eyebrow at the redhead.
"Oh... He went to get some more trashbags. I finished sweeping the porch and texted him earlier saying I would help with the trash."
"I see." She stood next to him for a few moments, before asking when she saw no one was around, "What...what are you going to do about Alex? I mean..." She tried to fix her question, seeing Kaoru's shoulders stiffen, "She's...She's not getting any better, Kaoru. I..." There was no way to approach this subject kindly or tenderly. Akiko swallowed, seeing Kaoru clench his fists. His jaw tightened. "I don't think..."
"She's fine!" He snapped, before flinching as he looked at her. He took a step back, shoving his hands into his pockets and stammering as he ducked his head. "Sh-She's fine... I-I'm sorry for snapping at you like that, but... Sh-She'll be okay. I-I know she will. Just-Just a gut feeling I have, o-okay? So-So don't go making any assumptions!"
Akiko looked startled at the tears welling up in Kaoru's eyes, the younger brother clearly shaken by the sudden subject. He removed his hands from his pockets and hugged himself, rubbing his arms with his hands. "I-I was just..." She swallowed, blinking away her own tears and nodding. "Yeah, you're right. I-I was stupid to think otherwise."
"Y-Yeah...you were." The piano playing continued in the background, somehow alleviating just the slightest bit of tension away from the situation at hand.
Kyoya stood there silently from inside the building, the music like a piercing siren to his ears at what he just heard. Alex was sick. Sicker than he imagined.
Now everything was starting to make sense, all the tiny little puzzle pieces fitting together to form the bigger picture. The reason why the twins were refusing him visits to their home when he wanted to see Alex, why the girl was suddenly avoiding him all this time, why the twins kept hovering around her more than usual the past few months to the point where it was nearly suffocating.
The tiny box he had in his jacket pocket suddenly felt like led. The conversation his father had with him repeating in his head, echoing all his painful thoughts.
"I'm warning you, Kyoya. That girl is trouble. Being an Hitachiin she is part of one of the more powerful families, but if you stay with her it will only hurt you."
He didn't understand his father. He avoided him practically since childhood, drilling it into his brain that he had to be better than his brothers, sparing no love for him at all. Yoshio Ootori would never accept failure as an option, and that included having a failure for a son. Kyoya did everything in his power to get his father to recognize him, to make him the next heir for the Ootori Group foundation. He was the third son... Kyoya was nothing compared to his siblings, who actually got their father to recognize them and their importance, who gave love to them and Kyoya's older sister.
Kyoya was never shown love by anyone other than Fuyumi and his mother, who appeared even more rarely than his father.
So why had his father seemed to suddenly care about his well-being? It merely confused him to no end and he just couldn't figure it out; it was another puzzle he had been unable to solve. Yoshio Ootori suddenly seemed just the littlest bit less heartless than what Kyoya had been led to believe his entire life, and it dumbfounded him.
Yoshio had been warning him that he knew something was wrong with Alex, something that couldn't be helped, and if he stayed with her (something that he had no idea how his father found out, but didn't put it against him as he knew the man was smarter than he sometimes takes him for) he would only end up hurt.
Alex was dying.
It didn't seem to quite resonate in his head. His phone vibrated in his pocket and he slowly pulled it out, staring with dead eyes at the text he received.
This is a cowards way of doing it
but I'm too scared to actually
say it to your face.
Please don't hate me for this.
His phone received another text after about two minutes, and he dully scrolled down.
You're amazing. Brilliant. Smartest person I know.
You're cold and calculated at times, but
that's what makes you...you.
You're kind, though you don't really
show it to people often and you use "moron"
as an affectionate term. You bubble up your feelings
and keep them inside until you can't hold them back
anymore and completely snap. You comforted me when
needed despite how bad you are with people and
you scare the hell out of me when you get silently
mad. You make me laugh,
you make me smile, you always make me feel better
just by being there with me.
But I'm not really an Hitachiin.
I'm just a girl plucked up off
the streets by the twins and
forced to join a Host Club to entertain random people.
It would never work out. You knew that, that's why we
kept "us" a secret. It was never going to work out.
Your dad would probably get you engaged to some
random rich girl ( bet you she wouldn't be as weird as me XD)
and would make you happy.
So we're through. Sorry isn't going to cut it, I'm not that stupid.
You just won't be happy with me.
Bye, Kyoya. Love you, and...please don't kill me.
He reread the last line repeatedly, his brain trying to process what he had just read and the information he just found out. Alex was dying and...she broke up with him?
Instead of feeling broke and completely destroyed, he found himself amused. So fucking amused at her attempt of a "good bye". Oh, he was so damn amused. But he wasn't just amused. No.
He was fucking pissed. He was about to storm up the stairs to room one twelve and interrogate the hell out of her, to yell at her and demand what made her think that he was going to let her go so easily. Kyoya was the Shadow King, and as far as he was concerned...
Alex was his. He was going to stick her in the damn hospital and keep her there until she got better. He was going to strap her down to the hospital bed and force feed her whatever medicine his family's hospital could offer to help keep her living.
Kyoya didn't realize how tightly he was holding his phone until he heard a loud crunch and found himself staring at the pieces of metal and plastic on the ground. He had snapped it in half. He saw something fly in the corner of his vision and turned his head, watching with stunned eyes as Akiko suddenly tackled Kaoru, barely pushing him out of the way as he fell onto the porch with the girl on top of him, covering his body as best as she could with hers as a flower pot fell and hit her back, breaking into pieces and slicing her clothes and cutting bits of her skin as water soaked her clothing completely, some red coloring the light apron and shirt.
"Everyone wants happiness, no one wants pain, but you can't make a rainbow without any rain."