"What an adorable family you all are!" The nurse said, lowering the camera and surveying the motley group of the Host Club and company with a grin.
Haruhi perked up at her father handing back her newborn daughter. She gave him an appreciative smile as she cradled her securely to her bosom. Tamaki had gingerly set himself back down to her side on the hospital bed, chin resting on her shaking shoulder, one leg curling up on the bed, and half of his chest supporting her back as he rubbed his hands up and down her upper arms to pacify her. She felt the sudden urge to shimmy out of his touch in front of their small audience.
"An adorable daughter from an adorable mother." The blond remarked, eyelids drooping as he tried to meet her eyes. He pursed her lips with his fingers and brought her cheek to his lips for another kiss.
"That is a lot of kisses," Haruhi told him bluntly.
"It'll never be enough for me. Both of you are too precious not to shower in love and tenderness from now on," Tamaki passionately declared.
The young mother looked at her newly discovered cousin, Megumi Kanoya, who seemed wholly immersed in her and Ritsu Kasanoda's own little world as they conversed. "I really want you to be more than just ardent soliloquies, Tamaki. You're a father now, don't you get it?"
"I truly understand what you're telling me, but after everything, why is it hard still for you to believe that's what I want and will continue to do for the both of you?" Tamaki defensively asked with his hand on his chest. He felt a now bitterly familiar wave of sadness at her words. Is it really that bad to act the way he does?
Haruhi didn't look at him as she said, "Focus on Reinette." Her loving gaze was down on the little girl sleeping soundly in front of everyone.
He had stayed with her throughout the majority of the birthing process. Though they didn't talk much about anything but the mundane and had uttered occasional reassurances of their love for each other to keep Haruhi's mind off the pain, it had started to feel like things were fine again between them. Tamaki couldn't understand why she was so intent on him not putting her first too at that moment. He knew more often than not that Haruhi was thoughtful and kind in what she said and did, but there must've been some kind of compromise they could've come to that satisfied her selfless needs. He hated even more choosing between her and their daughter than her and his mother.
He followed the direction of her gaze and his face softened—the young father dove in for a kiss.
"You can't give newborns kisses! Their immune systems are still developing!" Haruhi erupted, shocked as she pulled Reinette out of Tamaki's reach.
Tamaki stared at his little daughter cradled protectively in her mother's arms. "I didn't know that."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. What the hell is this awkward scene? Your baby was just born, and you're fighting in front of it already as a couple." Hikaru interjected, then Kaoru joined in as they said, "Maybe it was better for you two to have broken up."
"How dare—" The blond started.
"We aren't back together." Haruhi's monotone voice prematurely drowned out his cries of exasperation.
Confused, Tamaki's brows furrowed.
"Tamaki just hasn't known to be able to leave my side without good reason and surely can't leave now, right?" Haruhi looked over her shoulder to make eye contact with the blond, violet-eyed man behind her. Her cheeks had turned red as a smile spread on her lips when he returned the eye contact. "My little idiot."
Did he hear that right? He didn't like that smug look she gave him. And what was with that confusing, patronising term of endearment towards him?
Kyoya pushed up his glasses watching the scene before him. His lenses now opaque as the hospital lights reflected in them. He returned to his busywork.
"Ne, Haru-chan, why aren't you and Tama-chan back together?" Honey asked.
"I just think we should take things slow." Haruhi peacefully told him.
Everyone's colour drained from their faces as they stared at the young mother doting on her swaddled, sleeping daughter. "TAKE THINGS SLOW?"
Haruhi double-downed. "Yes."
"Ma cheri, you can't possibly be serious. Reinette will need a positive parental relationship to look up to and she can't possibly get that if her parents aren't together!" Tamaki pleaded.
His love was unamused by his dramatics. "She was just born, Tamaki."
Regardless, a hysterical Tamaki went on. "But what if she turns out to be a superhuman genius, and she remembers that time when her parents had an awkward relationship with each other?! What if, because of that, she thinks of herself as a mistake who wasn't born out of love?!"
She resolved to ignore him then.
Ryuji Fujioka stepped up to the man too close for comfort to his daughter. As far as he was concerned she'd forever be his little girl despite now having a little girl of her own. "Now, why does that bother you so much, Suoh? Mmm. Can't wait to knock her up again, mmm? Is that the real reason?"
The blond shivered intensely at the man's tone. "Ah~! Fujioka-san, not at all. I'd actually much rather wait a long time to have our next child..."
Ryuji violently grabbed at his face. "Huh? Next child?" He said darkly, eyes rolling back and still managing to bore into Tamaki's soul with a black-hearted smile.
"Daddy, give it a rest. Even if we were back together, I wouldn't allow myself to get caught up again in the situation that ended up with me and your sleeping granddaughter here. There's plenty of ways to express love, and sex has never been that appealing to me anyway." Haruhi casually said.
Tamaki didn't understand why he felt offended by that statement. He had replayed their liaison many times over in his head despite resenting himself for it. The loneliness some days made him weak. He had come to think of that time was when he could've expressed himself best with her. Yet, she didn't like it as much?
The rest of the Host Club blushed at her bluntness, the twins turning to their Host Club King with distaste. "You're a dirty pervert, milord."
Tamaki broke free from Ryuji's grasp and angrily stomped over to the deprecating twins of his ire. "If you're implying that I selfishly deceived Haruhi into bed then you are mistaken, you barbarians! I'll have you know that Haruhi loves me just as much as I love her!"
"Oh, yeah? What does she love about you?" The twins chorused as they shrugged, genuinely questioning. Their love for him and confusion about Kyoya and Haruhi's relationship—that they had been leaning further and further in favour of—made them realise Tamaki and Haruhi didn't make sense to them together.
The Host Club king opened his mouth wide to speak, finger-waggling paternally at the sarcastic twins. Nothing came out. They would be remiss not to witness and react incredulously to the rare event of him stopping to think about his answer. "What does she love about me?" Tamaki insecurely repeated the question to himself.
Haruhi, noticing the sudden heavy weight of the mood, called for the father of her child. "Tamaki-senpai, you don't always have to give in to their bait, you know."
The blond turned to look at her, but she suddenly wasn't looking at him anymore.
Kyoya was in the corner, typing away at his business calculator when he looked up feeling gazes upon him. He hadn't noticed Tamaki's staring as his eyes met Haruhi's. He smirked.
Tamaki saw his lover's cheeks tint red as she looked down coyly with a smile at their daughter.
Both their heads were facing downwards, dark hair covering their eyes. They were smiling to themselves, relatively uninvolved with the noise. They had similar auras, similar attitudes, and similar demeanours. Yet, it was through him that they got closer. It was miraculous it hadn't happened sooner...without him in the way.
The twins met each other's side glances, watching their boss unfold before them. Unanimously and with urgent concern, they tried to resolve the potential tantrum they had witnessed take on an entirely different level of unhinged not too long ago.
"You know what, milord?" Hikaru started.
"You don't have to answer. We were only teasing." Kaoru finished.
"Damn it!" He shouted to draw everyone's attention, cutting the tension with a sharp, menacing staccato. Megumi and Kasanoda watched intently. Ryuji was smirking to himself. The blond's fists and jaw were clenched, and his eyes dark. It was a scary sight to behold for all of them, and Tamaki wouldn't be able to recognize himself right then. He really had changed.
A small whimper and then a cry pulled him out of his temper. Haruhi turned to direct an irritated look at Tamaki, "You woke her up."
oOoOoOo
"Ne, Takashi?" Honey beckoned his younger, black-haired cousin. They were in the cafeteria again as Honey felt an empty desire for cake. He glumly chewed on a strawberry.
"Mm?" Mori calmly responded.
"Haru-chan and Tama-chan's relationship sure has changed, hasn't it?" Honey voiced his observation, hand to his lips contemplatively and Usa-chan in his other arm.
"Yes, they just had a child together," Mori stated matter of factually.
"Yeah, but I mean it's very different. Tamaki and Kyoya's relationship too. I sense some very bad energy between them even though those confrontations should've been the end of it." Honey elaborated. Reiko Kanazuki had introduced him to the concept of energies (particularly negative ones), and he's been hypersensitive to them since. He feared things would escalate further.
"Feelings are never as simple as you want them to be, Mitsukuni. Don't assume things." The near second-year university student told his older cousin. It was especially true since they were still teenagers after all.
A/N: I might just rewrite this because I'm still in the process of sorting out all my ideas, that's why this probably didn't come out as coherent as I wanted it to. Plus, I'm not the most talented writer and it's even worse when your mind is scrambled and easily disorganised. It's easy for me to mess up on syntax and for sentences to come out awkward. I want to build intrigue, foreshadow, and deliver on characterisation and tone already established in this prologue alone. It's a fun challenge. I'm sorry if I disappointed you fans who were waiting for this sequel for so long. It'll get better I swear!
I can't resist Reiko/Honey. They're too adorable even if their development was overshadowed and incomplete in the manga.
About Tamaki: He became wildly portrayed in my opinion near the end of Baby but strangely he was still in character for me. It all stemmed from chapter 29, but I've decided to believe that he really is that stupid and also that it's more complicated than let on. I can't be like everyone else in the story and judge him. I'm the author now, I need to understand the characters I'm writing. I was quick to get defensive over him reading because I'm used to character assassinations for the sake of shipping from previous fandoms. I personally just needed more from his end of the writing to have been as completely satisfied with his arc and by extension Kyoya and Haruhi's too. He didn't really explain himself nor portray himself in the best light which made him look horrible despite good intentions and overall being a good person otherwise. It was hard for me as a reader to neatly piece together what was going on in his mind to understand his actions as a character, in the end he came across as the villian of the story to me. Haruhi and Kyoya's judgements of him shouldn't have felt as impactful since the unfairness and complicated nature of all their circumstances should've been emphasized equally.
I really don't think Tamaki was malicious in his sleeping with her. He can't help their mutual feelings for one another, plus he's young and naive and so is Haruhi to a point. I do believe he considered either finding loopholes in his contract, trying to convince his grandmother of another way since he doesn't want to be separated from his family, and/or have Haruhi as his mistress but that sounded like the least appealing option to him because he respects and loves her too much. I'm planning on answering a lot of questions that 'Baby' raised and also maybe make satisfying rectifications of some choices the original author, SeductiveVenus made that I wasn't very happy with. I'm not retconning anything, just trying to work with what was given from both Baby and the manga/anime to make it fit the sequel story I want to tell that SeductiveVenus didn't get to. I have her permission guys! Read and review! :3