AN: This chapter took me way too long to finish. The ending was easy to write, everything beforehand was being stubborn. And I have a headache so I'll go back and edit later.
Star Crossed and Everything
Chapter Four
After splitting up with Benio and Chizuru to cover more ground, Hinako was the first to spot their elusive friend. But before she could excitedly greet her upperclassman, she froze when the second year was approached by four males. One she recognized as Kagome's younger brother who actually wasn't too bad (something she firmly believed was due to having Kagome as an older sister), and the other boys she assumed to be friends of his.
More troubling though was the towering figure behind her sempai, an Ouran student. She did not remember much of him other than the fact that he was part of that horrid host club.
"You guys did good," Kagome congratulated the two boys, affectionately ruffling their hair. "You should both be proud of your performance."
The tall one hummed his agreement, before boldly placing an arm around Kagome's shoulder. Hinako gasped, as she glared at the offending appendage.
"Does that mean we can go to the amusement park now," the small blond exclaimed, jumping onto Kagome's back.
How dare that boy think he deserved the right to act so familiar with her senpai!
"Of course," she said, laughing as she led the small pack of boys.
Hinako broke out of her stupor to follow after them. But with the end of the kendo tournament, everyone was trying to leave the dojo and Hinako quickly lost sight of her.
Stomping her foot in frustration, she hastily pulled out her cell phone and dialed Benio. She would know what to do.
Haruhi hated the stalking game. No matter how many times she had spent spying and been spied on, she always felt guilty about it. Seriously, did the others have any morals at all?
As usual, it was all Tamaki's idea. He and the twins were curious as to what Mori had been getting up to and since Honey wasn't willing to spill, they had decided to find out for themselves. A quick phone call from Kyoya and they quickly found themselves at a rather prominent dojo. And somehow she found herself being separated with the rambunctious twins.
It wasn't hard tracking down the tall upperclassmen. He was standing with a rather pretty girl, surrounded by Honey, their brothers, and another younger boy they did not recognize. Nothing had really garnered their attention until Mori had placed an arm around the girl's shoulder. But before the twins could find out more, they ended up losing them in the crowd just as quickly as they had found them.
"Can we go now," Haruhi asked, bored and still feeling guilty. After all, this was Mori-senpai, their friend. If he wanted to keep a secret, shouldn't they respect that? (Heck, she would probably do the same thing. The Host Club was crazy.)
"But aren't you even a little curious about what he's been up to," Kaoru suddenly asked, startling Haruhi right out of her thoughts.
"Wha, how did you…"
Hikaru cut her off with a chuckle and said, "You're easy to read. Besides, isn't it obvious?"
Haruhi shook her head, annoyed with the twins as usual. "What are you talking about? And isn't this crossing the line. We should wait until Mori-senpai is ready to tell us."
The twins rolled their eyes.
Hikaru crossed his arms and said, "Don't be a fool. Besides you saw the girl."
Haruhi stared impassively at the two. Why did they have to blow everything out of proportion? "So what, that doesn't mean anything."
But they ignored her and started speculating about Mori's love life.
"Can you imagine what kind of girl Mori-senpai would date," Kaoru said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "She's probably just as quiet as he is."
"You think they communicate with a series of grunts," Hikaru joked, earning a snicker from his brother and a disdainful eye roll from Haruhi.
"C'mon," she sighed, grabbing both twins by the arm. "I can see Tamaki-senpai waving us over."
The four boys quickly exchanged information while Haruhi looked on, unamused. However, when they started talking about following them, she drew the line and asked, "Can't you guys just wait until Monday to confront him?"
Tamaki shook his head. "We must find out what kind of flower has caught our senpai's eye.
Hikaru rolled his eyes and said, "She's probably not that special."
"Still," Kyoya spoke up, pulling out his black notebook. "We should investigate and find out whether this will hurt club membership."
"Not you too, Kyoya-senpai," Haruhi groaned. Once Kyoya was on board, nothing would stop them now.
Kagome excitedly greeted Yuka just outside the gates of the amusement park. Since she was the only female of the bunch, she had gone ahead and invited her old friend. After a quick introduction to the Haninozuka siblings, having already met Mori and his brother, they ventured into the park unaware of the sets of eyes that followed them.
They decided to eat first as there had not been any food at the kendo tournament. After they had filled their stomachs, Souda asked, "So, what should we do first?"
"Let's play a few games," Yuka suggested, mostly to avoid going on any rides.
Honey nodded his head in agreement and added, "We did just eat. Wouldn't want to give ourselves tummy aches."
Yasuchika rolled his eyes at his older brother's childish antics while the girls giggled and cooed over how adorable he was.
Smiling, Kagome linked her arm with Mori's and said, "Let's go then."
Once they reached the gaming alley, the high schoolers broke off to play against one another in a water gun race. Souta, Yasuchika, and Satoshi attempted to outscore the other in a basketball game.
When they all lost to some younger kids the boys, minus Honey, decided to try to test their strength at the high striker The three watched in amusement as Souta, Yasuchika, and Satoshi tried to beat one another. In the end though, they were all easily outdone by Mori as he was the only one to actually hit the target hard enough to ring the bell. He chose a large raccoon plush and shyly gave it to Kagome.
Yuka smiled at the touching scene. The two made a cute pair. And she was glad to see Kagome so happy, especially after everything she went through in middle school and the beginning of high school.
Looking up she spotted a familiar brunette. She immediately felt her stomach drop. Kagome's classmates could ruin their date in a heartbeat
She hastily grabbed her best friend's arm and started pulling her in the opposite direction she had spotted Benio. "Come on you guys, let's go check out the funhouse."
Kagome shot her a confused look but let herself be dragged. The others, not quite sure what to make of her behavior, followed anyways.
Once they were inside, she purposely got the group separated from Kagome and Mori. And once she was sure there was a good enough distance, she started to explain her behavior. "Kagome's classmates are here."
Souta immediately groaned in annoyance while the Ouran classmates looked at one another, confused.
"Are they that bad," Honey asked.
Souta seriously nodded his head. "Worse. They'll definitely try to break up Kagome and Mori-san."
"I saw your club mates over by the food court," Yasuchika blasé commented, earning a punch in the arm from Satoshi.
"Why didn't you say anything earlier," he asked. The blond middle schooler only shrugged in reply.
Yuka pinched her forehead in frustration. While she didn't know much about the other group that was apparently were there, it didn't sound too good. "Okay, okay this is what we are gonna do. Souta and I are going to deal with Kagome's friends while you three keep the others away."
Honey, Souta, and Satoshi nodded their heads. Yasuchika rolled his eyes and asked, "Why does it matter?"
"Because, Kagome-chan and Takashi deserve a nice date," Honey replied. He knew his cousin's track record with dates and it would be nice if one went smoothly for once.
They quickly ran to catch up to the other two to set their plans in motion.
"Chika-chan dropped his wallet," Honey blurted out once they reached the exit.
"We should split up to find it," Kagome replied.
Yuka quickly jumped onto her train of thought. "Yeah, Souta and I will backtrack through the fun house."
"And I'll go with Sato-chan and Chika-chan back to the games," Honey said.
"We could help too," Kagome spoke up. But the five of them were already sprinting off.
"Don't worry about it," Souta called over his shoulder.
Kagome and Mori looked at each other, shrugged, but let them be. It would be nice they figured, spending time with just each other. So the two continued to explore the amusement park.
Mori noticed Kagome's slow pace and asked, "Tired?"
She nodded her head. She hadn't really had time to rest after dance practice and racing to the but to make it to the competition on time. And even there, she had stayed on her feet.
He surprised her by bending down in front of her, gesturing for her to climb on his back. She was a little embarrassed, especially by the all the attention they suddenly received.
He was gentler than InuYasha had ever been. He was very mindful of his hands position, which Kagome found endearing. His face was beat red, so unlike his normal cool cadence. "C'mon Takashi-kun, let's go check out the Ferris Wheel."
He didn't reply, only changed direction.
"Did I really have to tag along with you," Souta grumbled as the pair looked for the Lobelia girls.
Yuka shot him an annoyed look and snapped, "There's no way I'm dealing with them on my own."
Souta made a disgusted face. He couldn't see how his sister actually liked hanging out with them. They were crazy, and they hated his guts. But they had done a lot for his sister, he would reluctantly give them that.
Luckily (or unluckily depending on how you looked at it), the Zuka Club found them.
"Yuka-chan, how good to see you again. And you as well Higurashi, " Benio announced, causing Yuka and Souta to roll their eyes.
"Where's Kagome-senpai," Hinako asked.
Chizuru scoffed and angrily added, "Yes. We heard she was here with some of those lewd boys from the Host Club."
"Host Club," Souta and Yuka repeated at the same time, confused.
"I think you got your information mixed up," Yuka spoke up. Kagome definitely would have told her something about a Host Club.
Hinako shook her head and replied, "I know what I saw. Those Ouran boys are no good."
"Explain," Yuka demanded, crossing her arms. She wasn't about to let Kagome get hurt again.
Tracking down the Host Club was a lot easier than they thought it was going to be, which really should have not been too surprising. They were no good at spying, not that, that had ever stopped them before.
"What are you guys doing here," Honey asked, catching the group off guard.
"Honey-senpai, we merely came to check on Mori-senpai," Tamaki easily replied, seeing nothing wrong with their behavior.
"Yeah," the twins said, glancing at one another before asking, "Who was that girl he was with?"
"That's none of our business," Haruhi grounded out.
Satoshi nodded his head. "Leav,e Kagome-san, out of whatever you guys are planning."
"So her name is Kagome," Kyoya remarked, scribbling in his notebook.
Haruhi sighed and said, "Can't you guys just let this go? Mori-senpai will tell us about his girlfriend when he's ready."
"Don't act like you're not curious," Hikaru said.
"Not really," she honestly answered.
"There really is nothing exciting about Takashi's relationship with Higurashi," Yasuchika replied in a bored manner.
While they were arguing, Satoshi took off. He had a bad feeling if the Host Club met Kagome, they would only ruin her relationship with his brother. And he really did like her, she was good for his brother.
Instead of taking the seat across from him, Kagome had sat down besides Mori in the Ferris Wheel. The stuffed raccoon rested comfortably on her lap. They sat for most of the ride in silence, taking in the scenery and simply enjoying each other's company.
Boldly, Mori wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She instantly leaned into his touch, and he doubted if his face would ever return to a normal color again.
"I, I really like being with you," Kagome shyly admitted, her attention unusually focused on the stuffed animal in her hands.
Mori smiled down at her as he gently cupped her chin so that their eyes met. "I like being with you, too."
She leaned in closer, tilting her head as she let her eyes flutter close. Mori followed her lead. But before he could close that distance, the ride jolted to a stop. Kagome automatically flinched back and before they knew it, the ride operator was throwing their door open.
Smiling sheepishly, she took his hand. He instantly laced their fingers together as they wandered through the park again. A cloud of disappointment lingered around both teens.
"We should find the others," Kagome murmured.
He nodded his head and let her lead. Inwardly, he was berating himself at the lost moment. He had wanted to kiss her for ages now but the timing had never been quite right. The girls at the club were always going on about how special a kiss was, and he wanted their first one to be memorable.
Sighing, they continued on when his brother suddenly ran up to them. He eyed his brother wearily. Satoshi was nervously rubbing the back of his neck as sweat perspired on his brow. His gaze kept sweeping the area around them, as if looking for someone.
"Hey," Kagome greeted him, unaware of his suspicious behavior. "We just started looking for you guys. Do you know where the others are?"
"Y-yeah. They're at the parking lot already. Let's go," Satoshi rambled, grabbing Mori's free arm as he attempted to drag him in the opposite direction they had been headed.
"Mori-senpai!"
The Morinozuka siblings froze at the sound of the familiar voice. Mori craned his neck to see the Host Club running up to them. Honey and Yasuchika trailed close behind. He blinked owlishly, wandering what they were doing there.
"What are you doing here," he bluntly asked.
"Wanted to see who you've been ditching us for," the twins just as bluntly replied as they eyed Kagome, disdainfully. She blushed uncomfortably at their scrutinizing behavior and Mori pulled her closer to him.
Haruhi elbowed the twins in their sides as she reprimanded them, "Don't be rude."
"Mori-senpai, why have you been hiding such a fetching flower from us," Tamaki spoke winsomely as he approached Kagome. He smiled brightly and took her hand, placing a chaste kiss on her knuckles. She giggled at the flattering attention while Mori narrowed his eyes at the blonde-haired boy.
"So you are Higurashi Kagome," Kyoya spoke up, reading out of his black notebook. "Raised on the Higurashi shrine, you live with your grandfather, mother, and younger brother. You were sick through most of middle school. And was kicked out of your first high school for excessive absences and are currently on a scholarship at your new school."
Kagome narrowed her eyes at the dark haired boy. She didn't know who he was and he apparently had too much information on her. But before she could confront him, someone called out to her.
"Kagome-chan!"
She facepalmed when she heard that voice. As if things could not get any more awkward. She was instantly attacked from behind by the blond who was unhealthily obsessed with her. Chizuru wrapped her arms around her neck and leaned her head on her should, completely ignoring Mori who was frowning at the intimate contact.
"Kagome-chan, you wouldn't believe the nonsense we heard from Yuka-chan and that brother of yours," she cried, nuzzling her face in the other girl's neck. "They said you were on a date, with a boy."
"Uhh, Chizuru," Kagome calmly spoke before holding up her and Mori's entwined hands for her to see. "I am on a date."
"So it's true," Benio dramatically declared, glaring heatedly at Mori who stared defiantly back. She and Hinako were the last to show up, but Yuka and Souta were nowhere to be seen.
"How do you know them, Kagome-chan," Honey asked, earning a glare from Hinako and Chizuru. He frowned and moved to stand behind his brother.
"Huh," Kagome distractedly said as she looked away from the glaring third years to Honey. "We're classmates."
Mori's brow furrowed in confusion as he looked to his girlfriend and said, "You go to Lobelia?"
"Well, yeah. I thought you knew," she honestly replied. It wasn't like she had hid it from him. He had seen her participate at a Lobelia event from the Cultural Festival.
"Why didn't you say something," he asked upset, as he tried to digest the information. He still hadn't forgiven Lobelia for attempting to take Haruhi.
Kagome shot him an irritated look and replied, "Why does it matter?"
"Wow, Kagome-senpai," Hinako spoke up, interrupting the two. "I don't think I could be so understanding."
"What do you mean," Kagome inquired, confused and beginning to lose her patience.
"You didn't tell her," Benio spoke, a dangerous smile on her face. Mori tightened his grip on Kagome's hand.
Honey looked concerned as he tugged on his cousin's sleeves. "You did tell her, right?"
Becoming suspicious, Kagome pulled her hand free as she looked at Mori. She pointedly asked, "Tell me what?"
"He's part of Ouran's nefarious Host Club," Benio answered for him.
Before the information could sink in, Chizuru added. "It's true. He sees other girls everyday. Girls who are blindly in love with him and he encourages it."
"Are you really part of a host club," Kagome asked, looking up at him. Mori couldn't meet her gaze.
"You bet he is," Kaoru spoke up and Hikaru continued on, "The girls love the tall silent type."
"You guys," Haruhi hissed. This was bad and they definitely should not have gotten involved.
"I don't think we should see each other anymore, Morinozuka," Kagome quietly spoke. Before Mori could react, she shoved the stuffed raccoon into his arms and bolted.