Author's note: So I had time to type up this chapter, and I thought since I won't be able to post again until the end of the week I should be nice and post it so you know how much I love you all. :-D
"So, mon amour, does this 'no sex' rule extend to sharing a bed?" Tamaki was leaning against the door frame, violet eyes seeking Kyoya's from across the room. The dark-haired host looked up from his notebook, a rare smile on his face.
"Well, that depends. Can I trust you to not molest me in my sleep?"
"Nope," the blond said with a grin. Kyoya sighed.
"Well, I suppose I'll have to take my chances. After all, this entire trip was your idea. It wouldn't be polite of me to make you sleep all alone in the other room."
"Kyoya, you are the epitome of a gentleman," the blond said with a cheeky grin as he sauntered over, coming to a stop directly beside the bed. He looked down at Kyoya for a moment before reaching out with one hand and deftly plucking the notebook from the other boy's grasp, tossing it behind him onto the nearby armchair.
"What exactly are you doing, Tamaki?" Kyoya asked in a level tone. The blond climbed gracefully onto the bed until he was straddling the brunette's legs.
"I'm making my boyfriend pay some attention to me," he said impishly.
"I was figuring out the projected expenses for that Greco-Roman cosplay you want to do with the Club next month. The blandness of his voice was in direct contrast to the fires beginning to his dark eyes as the other boy's fingers reached out and began to teasingly unbutton his shirt.
"The numbers will be there tomorrow while you're avoiding joining in on all the fun activities I have planned. Tonight, though, I want your focus on me." By the time the blond had finished murmuring he'd completely opened his lover's shirt and had begun to trace the exposed skin with his fingertips, his passion-purple eyes never leaving Kyoya's dark ones.
"I suppose I might find some merit in that." From the corner of his eye he thought he might have seen two flashes of red hair disappearing into the forest and he smiled, reaching up to grab the golden hair at the nape of Tamaki's neck. With a quick tug he got the boy's full attention and allowed himself to smirk at the gasp his action drew.
"Did you want something, Kyoya?" his lover asked in a soft, intimate voice.
"What kind of person just jumps right into stripping his partner?" Kyoya mused, watching as the blond pondered his question. As the gentle King thought about what he'd just been asked Kyoya's smirk grew wider. Without warning he yanked the blond forward, molding their lips together in a way that left absolutely no doubt about how much the cool host missed his prince's touch.
"Do you think Hika-chan and Kao-chan have headed out to visit Haru-chan yet?" The boy Lolita was sitting in the lotus position, his eyes closed, his breathing steady. He'd only taken that short nap with Haruhi earlier in the day, but oddly he wasn't as sleepy as he thought he would be.
"Yes," came Mori's voice from where he sat in a similar position a few feet away.
"I think so too." There was silence in the room, but even so one would barely have been able to hear their breathing. Shortly, the sound of rain began to register as it danced on the roof, the pitter-patter of little drops tapping the windows.
"I wish we could help Haruhi," Honey murmured. "She's so worried and stressed and scared right now. Is it any wonder she's acting strange? I know the others have noticed, but I wonder if she'll ever tell them why."
"She will," Mori answered. Honey thought for a moment.
"I suppose you're right. She's just not ready yet." He paused. "I wonder what she'd think if she knew how we all feel about her?" His question was rhetorical and even if it hadn't been he wouldn't have expected an answer from his quiet cousin anyway. Instead he turned his mind inward and relaxed. Nothing more was said between the two, and that suited them just fine.
The rain had finally slowed, then stopped, but the three now soaked hosts made no move to get up. However, with the absence of rain came inevitable speech.
"How are you feeling?" Kaoru asked softly. There was a long pause before she answered, long enough that the twins were sure if they didn't know for a fact that she was awake they would have sworn she had dropped off.
"Strangely relaxed. Even though I'm drenched and covered in sand." Her chuckle wrapped around them like a hug.
"That's good," Hikaru answered. "The relaxed part, not the sand part." She laughed at that and he raised himself up on one elbow, looking down at her. On her other side his twin mirrored his position. A glance between the two was all that was needed. Hikaru spoke first.
"We want to apologize," he said.
"Why?" she asked, honestly curious as she looked from one to the other.
"We...well, we haven't always been fair to you, Haruhi," he continued, the explanation being taken up by his twin.
"We take you for granted a lot, and we don't always listen to what you want." Kaoru's voice was as quiet as the distant waves, his eyes earnest. His brother's were just as sincere, though there was a tinge of stubbornness in them in contrast to the slight sheepishness the younger twin displayed. She sat up and shifted until she was facing them both.
"Okay, what brought this on, you two?" she asked calmly. She was half expecting their usual grins that signified their hidden humor, but she saw nothing but apology shining back at her.
"Haruhi," Hikaru began, pausing in obvious uncertainty before powering on with a determined sigh. "You have to know how much we...care about you."
"Of course I do. You two are my closest friends." He shook his head as Kaoru continued.
"Not just Hika and me – though we do care about you. We mean all of us. The entire Club. You're so important to all of us." He paused, watching as his words sunk in a bit before speaking again. "Honey-senpai said you're going through some hard stuff right now." Her eyes widened, filled with hurt.
"He told you?" she choked out.
"Nothing specific," Kaoru was quick to assure her, seeing how upset she was. "He said it was up to you to tell in your own time. He would never betray you, Haruhi, never! Not unless he felt he had to. You know that. He didn't tell us anything."
"No matter how much we asked," Hikaru grumbled under his breath. They saw how much she relaxed at their admittance and it hurt a little, but Kaoru kept talking.
"We just...he helped us realize that we – well, we kind of treat you like a possession sometimes. And it's not fair. How can we expect you to confide in us when we act like we own you?"
Haruhi was stunned. Wide-eyed and open-mouthed, she stared at the two shirtless, damp redheads. Finally she found her voice.
"I...guys, no." She shook her head. "Just – no. You're...that's just how you are. I've always known that. And it doesn't bother me as much as I let on," she said with a tiny smile.
"Then why don't you trust us?" Hikaru burst out, glaring at her, the pain evident in his eyes, his voice. "Something's bothering you – something's wrong! And you don't trust us enough to tell us!"
"Hika..." Kaoru gasped, placing one hand on his brother's shoulder. The angry twin shook it off.
"It's not like that, Hikaru," Haruhi said, her tone apologetic, but it wasn't enough to calm him.
"It's not?" he growled. "If it's 'not like that' then why did you tell Honey-senpai and not us?"
"Because you two pissed me off!" she exclaimed, jumping to her feet and staring unflinchingly at the elder twin, who leapt to his feet shortly after. "You kissed me, Hikaru – without even asking! And then you got Kaoru to do it too!" she snarled, glaring at the younger as well. "I was already upset with Tamaki-senpai and then you two pulled that...that stunt! If Mitsukuni hadn't gotten me out of there when he did I don't want to think of what I might have done!" Now she was in full fury, something that they had never seen. Kaoru was cautious, standing slowly, but Hikaru's temper sparked in response to hers.
"So you didn't like it when we kissed you, you didn't trust us enough to tell us what's wrong – do you even want us around any more or does the thought of our company disgust you as well?"
"Hika, Haru, you're shouting!" Kaoru hissed, but neither seemed to listen.
"When did I ever say I was disgusted?" she snapped, bristling at the angry host.
"You didn't have to. I can tell what it means when I kiss a girl and she says it pisses her off!" They were a foot from each other, the energy around them nearly snapping.
"Of course I was pissed! You never asked, you just...took! And if that wasn't enough, you convinced Kaoru to kiss me too!"
"He didn't have to convince me, Haru – I wanted to." Kaoru's quiet insistence drew her attention and her ire.
"Bullshit. You two have never said anything about that. And I know you always follow Hikaru's lead like the good little uke you are!" Her words pushed a button few knew the calmer twin had and his eyes flashed dangerously.
"W never said...what the hell, Haruhi? When does that come up in conversation? 'Hey – can we borrow your notes from class? Oh, and would you mind if we kissed you?' Yeah, that's smooth."
"Well, anything would have been better than pinning me to the couch in front of our clients!"
"Anything?" he growled. Hikaru's eyes went wide and he took a few steps back. He'd only heard that low tone to Kaoru's voice once or twice before, and it never heralded anything peaceful. However, their friend had never had the dubious honor of facing a severely pissed off Kaoru; as such, she had no idea she was about to poke a dragon in the eye.
"Yeah, anything! Do you know how embarrassed I was?" She was matching the younger twin glare for glare, angry enough to not even flinch when he stepped closer to her. It wasn't until she truly saw the look in his eyes that her own widened, but by then it was too late for her to back down.
"Well, if anything would be better, then come here," he snarled, reaching out to grab her arm and yank her forward. She gasped and stumbled into him, her hands coming up to brace against the warm bare skin of his abdomen.
"Kaoru – what..?" she gulped, looking into honeyed eyes that seemed to sear her alive.
"I'll never hurt you, Haruhi, or force you to do anything you don't want." His voice was low, but though it had lost the snarl it wasn't any less dangerous. "However, unless you say no right now, I have every intention of kissing you the way I wanted to in the Music Room that day." Behind him she saw Hikaru's eyes, wide with surprise and very obvious interest. She blinked and looked back at the younger – and surprisingly dominant – twin in whose arms she was well and truly caught, and she swallowed hard.
"So what'll it be, Haruhi? Do I let you go, walk away, we pretend that this whole conversation never happened? Or do I get to kiss you with your own consent?" One of his hands slid up her arm, over her shoulder, her neck, until his fingers were threaded through her hair. She thought her heart was going to explode. She should say no. She should pull back, send them both away, give all three of them a chance to calm down, try and salvage their friendship when they were all a little more...sane. That would be the smart thing. She looked into the eyes of one of her two best friends – one of her biggest weaknesses, her deepest temptations – and answered.
"Well, at least you're asking this time." She was as shocked as he was but Kaoru recovered first. She felt his other hand reach around her waist and drag her against him, the hand in her hair tugging her head to the side just so, and then he captured her lips with his own.
Haruhi's head spun. Far from the soft, gentle kiss in the Club room, Kaoru took full advantage of her compliance. He nipped her lower lip, soothing it with his tongue, and when she gasped he deepened the kiss accordingly. She could feel his tongue caress her own, coaxing, teasing, and she was teasing back before she really knew it. Her hands rose of their own accord to wrap around his neck as both of his slid around the small of her back and pulled her tight against his body. Her involuntary moan triggered an answering growl in his throat and he shifted his mouth from her lips to her cheek, her jaw, her neck, each whimper causing him to grin. When her head dropped back and he found his lips ghosting along her collarbone he swallowed hard and shifted slightly, pressing his lips to hers in a gentle kiss, one meant to comfort rather than inflame. Eventually he pulled back, arms loosening as he released her without actually letting her go. He was delighted to see the unfocused look in her chocolate eyes, her swollen lips, her flushed skin.
"Never think I had to be convinced," he whispered.
"I...Kaoru...what..?" she stammered. Glancing up she saw that Hikaru had stepped closer, now standing right behind his brother. Two sets of eyes – one loaded with slowly fading dominance, the other with unconcealed appraisal – gazed at her as the younger twin leaned back against the elder. She had a sudden, very vivid image of the two of them entwined in the sand, arms and legs shifting as they kissed and caressed, and it was that vision that snapped her back to reality. She took a step back only to realize she was still gripping Kaoru's neck. Flushing more deeply, mind whirling, she let go and he allowed her to retreat. The boys shared a look but it was Hikaru that spoke for them.
"Maybe we should call it a night," he said softly. "We'll talk later. It looks like we all have a lot to think about." She nodded absently. He stepped forward slowly, as though approaching a skittish animal, and when she didn't retreat he cautiously hugged her, happier than he could express when she hugged him back without hesitation. Kaoru stood back, unsure of himself after everything that had just happened, and when Hikaru finally let go of their friend the two brothers stood together once more.
"Haruhi," he said softly, "I...well, I just...I'm -"
"Don't you dare say you're sorry." Her voice was quiet but vehement. He swallowed and nodded, all traces of anger gone, leaving only the mellow twin behind.
"I'm not sorry," he assured her. "I'm just not sure what to say now." She smiled, a small upward twitch of her lips.
"We'll figure it out." She stepped forward and gave him a comforting hug and he sighed, relieved that his rash actions hadn't cost him his best friend.
"You two should get going – I'm sure there are plans for tomorrow." Her smile was wry.
"Yeah," they said, shaking their heads and rolling their eyes before speaking again. "Haruhi, we don't want to push, but just know we're here for you, whatever you need."
"I know. And thanks. For everything." They gave her one of their standard double hugs and then they were gone and she was alone with her sand-crusted skin, soggy clothes, and an entirely new set of memories and images to torment her sleeping hours.