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"Love?"

Airisu stared at Hikaru's gaping expression, her heart beginning to race. Why did he go and mention love? He was so stupid! Such an idiot! Her gaze met his, and despite his horrified look, she couldn't help but think this is the most handsome he'd ever looked. Leaves swirled around his auburn hair, the reds and oranges complementing his amber eyes. It occurred to Airisu that he always parted it to the right…wait, why was she even thinking about his physical appearance? She felt her own cheeks get hot.

Hikaru stuttered. "Um, er, uh. I-I mean…like a friend. My friend, someone I care about. I can't watch a friend keep getting hurt."

He seemed to wince, as if his explanation was sounding ridiculous. His face was as red as the stupid roses the host club handed out all the time. What was she supposed to say to that? She took in a breath, turning away from him. She took in a deep breath, taking in his original statement. He loved her? She shook her head. No, this was ridiculous. He even just said like a friend, surely he didn't mean it the first time. But how could it come out so easily?

Hikaru's voice sounded shaky as he spoke again, "Er, we're partners for the science project, um, which is why I care for you like a friend. You know, I wouldn't want a bad grade on the assignment HAHAHA."

Hikaru ran his hand through his hair. She needed to say something back, but her pounding heart made it hard to think. She was supposed to be angry with him. He meddled in her affairs and refused to apologize! He'd ignored her wishes. Not to mention he was generally grumbly and dramatic. There seemed to be no good reason to make up with him.

Yet why had her anger dissipated at his one remark?

"I-I'm going back to the camp." She walked as quickly as she could without daring to look back. Her face felt like it was on fire. She couldn't let it show that her anger had disappeared like the wood burnt into charcoal.

Back at camp, she walked over to Kaoru, who was trying his best to put the tent together. Their tent was at the edge of camp, a fire in the middle. Haruhi's tent was near the fire, Tamaki and Kyoya's tent was immediately next to hers. Mori and Honey's tent was on the other side of the fire, the closest to Kaoru and hers. Rentaro and Hikaru's tent lay on the ground, no progress made. Rentaro was nowhere in sight, to her relief.

"Ah, you're back!" Kaoru said, smiling at her.

Airisu blinked. She forced herself to think about anything other than Hikaru. Instead, she focused on Kaoru. This wasn't the first time she'd had this thought, but it seemed a little bit like Kaoru's smile didn't meet his eyes. Was he unhappy staying with her? Surely he had wanted to stay with Hikaru but stepped in to stop Rentaro from staying with her.

Airisu remarked, "I didn't thank you earlier. But thanks."

Kaoru raised an eyebrow. "For what?"

"For stepping in. I didn't want to stay with Rentaro, but I would've had trouble refusing on my own."

"Well, Hikaru was the one who refused for you," Kaoru pointed out.

Airisu's face went hot again. It was a lot harder than she thought to forget his brother. And Kaoru was right: Hikaru had shouted no and way too loudly at that. He was such an idiot! Still, her lips twitched into a smile at the memory. She cleared her throat suddenly, realizing she was ignoring Kaoru.

"Yes, I suppose. But you offered to stay with me instead, which was a much more rational solution."

Kaoru studied her for a moment. Without saying anything, he turned around, screwing two halves of a tent pole together. At this point, he had almost the whole tent put up on his own. Airisu stared at him for a moment. It was like watching Hikaru, she'd never seen a set of twins as similar as they were. Kaoru had his hair parted to the left, making her wonder if they always did that to distinguish themselves. Yet her heart wasn't pounding like it did with the more hot-headed twin. Wouldn't her disposition make her more likely to connect with the rational one of the two? Why did she feel so distant from Kaoru?

Hm, come to think of it, Kaoru was very rational. In fact, it was highly unlikely that the scheme with Kyoya was concocted just by Hikaru, surely Kaoru had a role in it. He seemed to have a reason for doing everything. So what was his reason for staying with her tonight? It appeared to be a sudden decision simply to protect her from Rentaro. Yet something didn't seem quite right about it.

Kaoru interrupted her thoughts. "Do you want to help me with the tent fabric?"

Airisu grabbed the other end of the material, helping Kaoru pull it into place and stake it into the ground. In a matter of moments, the tent was set up and ready to go. Airisu turned to grab their sleeping bags, entering the tent. Her stomach dropped, realizing how little space the two of them would actually have. Certainly she would prefer staying with Kaoru over Rentaro, but tonight was still going to be awkward.

After taking turns changing into their night clothes, Airisu took in the sights and sounds of the tent. The sky had darkened, only the dwindling fire allowed them to see outside the tent. Airisu thought she heard Tamaki crying to Kyoya about scary shadows, but she was very tired and no longer concerned with the princely boy's antics. Airisu turned her flashlight on in the tent, crawling into her sleeping bag. Kaoru stayed sitting on his, staring straight forward. Was he lost in thought?

Airisu turned the flashlight out. "Um, Kaoru, can I ask you something?"

"Sure," he said. His voice sounded as if he were forcing friendliness.

Airisu took in a breath. "Do you dislike me?"

There was silence for a moment from Kaoru, making her a little nervous to hear his response. She heard rustling, as if he were getting into his sleeping bag. Finally, he responded. "What makes you think that? Of course I don't dislike you."

"You just…." How could she say this without being offensive? "I don't know. I just get that impression."

"I'm uncomfortable around you."

She looked up, surprised he was being so open. "Why?"

"You're the first person who's been closer with Hikaru than with me. That makes me uneasy."

Airisu didn't know what to say to Kaoru's honesty. She was partnered with Hikaru for their science project, so it made sense she became closer to him. And she had no ill feelings toward Kaoru, and in fact…

"I'd like to get to know you better," Airisu admitted.

"How do you feel about Hikaru?"

Airisu's heart skipped a beat. "I don't know. I'm still upset with him and he refuses to apologize. At least, I was upset." She remembered his expression again when he mentioned that she was someone he loved. Upset might not be the right word to use in this situation.

Kaoru said, "Why aren't you angry with me, when I did the same as him?"

Airisu winced. He did have a point; it didn't make much sense. "I…I know Hikaru better, so he should've known better."

Kaoru sighed, only pointing out to Airisu that her reasoning didn't really make sense. She bit her lip. She should talk to Hikaru again. She should apologize.

Suddenly, someone rapped on the side of the tent.

Hikaru's voice sounded through. "Kaoru! I need to talk to you."

Kaoru groaned. "Sorry, Airisu, but we'll have to talk later." He exited the tent, leaving Airisu alone with her thoughts.

How did she feel about Hikaru? It was becoming more and more clear to her that she treated him differently than her other friends. And why had she gotten so angry with him and nobody else? Even the anger was pointless, it had immediately dissipated as soon as Hikaru accidentally used the word "love".

Her heart pounded in her chest again at the memory. She was the real idiot, not him. She buried her face in her sleeping bag.

Earlier, after Airisu left Hikaru.

Airisu said, "I'm going back to camp."

As soon as she was out of sight, Hikaru dropped to the ground in a squat. He held his hands to his head. What had he done? He began to replay the previous conversation with Airisu, this time the genre was horror–

"There you are."

Speaking of horror, Hikaru glanced up, his heart sinking in his chest. The last person he possibly wanted to see was standing in front of him. His jaw clenched as Rentaro squatted down to his level.

"I'm guessing the conversation with Airisu didn't go well?"

Hikaru stood up. "Leave me alone."

Rentaro sighed. "She likes you, you know."

Hikaru froze, then turned around to face the dark-haired boy as he stood back up. "W-what? No she—"

"She does. I know because she used to like me, but now she's acting like that towards you. She watches you. She holds you to a higher standard than the others, which is why she's so upset with you right now."

Hikaru's heart skipped a beat. Rentaro's words normally made him irritated, but this time they gave him an immense amount of hope. Was it possible that Airisu really felt the same way? This whole time he'd been concerned with deepening then keeping her friendship, never with pursuing anything more. The thought seemed absurd at this point, in their current situation.

Hikaru sighed. "Look, I don't need your advice…"

"Let me help you. Please." Rentaro's expression was steady.

"Read the room. I've made it clear I want nothing to do with you."

"I…I messed up with Airisu. Big time. She….she told me something that made her very upset and instead of supporting her, I blackmailed her."

"What did she tell you?"

"I won't say. That's the one thing I can do for her. But I think she will tell you. Just show her she can trust you. Once she loses that trust you'll lose her forever. I'm not stupid, I can see how she acts with me. I thought…I don't know. That we could make up. But I took advantage of her in the worst possible way."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Because she likes you. I just want her to be happy…" Rentaro paused, as if gathering his thoughts. "Airisu is going to feel very pressured to meet someone else, but I don't think that will really make her happy. So please stop that from happening, if it does. I won't be here anymore to help. I'm not going to join the host club. I'm going to transfer schools. I was selfish and thought things would go back to the way they were, but they won't. You were all so kind to me. Well, everyone except you."

Hikaru crossed his arms. "When are you leaving?"

"Now. Tell the others. I'm not going to let myself get in the way of your and Airisu's relationship."

Hikaru's head was hurting. He was still reeling over the incident with Airisu earlier. And now Rentaro said he was leaving? Not to mention, he thought Airisu had a crush on him? This was all too much.

"Good riddance!" Hikaru said. He pulled his eyelid down and stuck his tongue out at Rentaro.

"Heh, I don't know what I was expecting with you. Well, I'm off. Take care of Airisu."

After Rentaro was out of sight, Hikaru sat on the ground again. What just happened? Was Rentaro right? Did Airisu like him? He felt like he was about to explode.

But she had walked away when he accidentally confessed to her! She seemed so uncomfortable. Surely he'd ruined any chance at reconciliation at that moment. And Rentaro had left. Surely Airisu would blame him for it! He splayed out in the leaves, glancing up at the darkening sky. He should go back to camp.

He found Kaoru and Airisu's tent, blushing a little bit before rapping on the tent fabric. "Kaoru! I need to talk to you."

After some rustling, Kaoru emerged, hair a bit ruffled from having been laying in his tent. Hikaru felt embarrassed, sure that Airisu had heard him, certainly not ready to face her. Kaoru sighed, probably glancing at how disheveled Hikaru looked.

The two walked in silence for a moment, deciding to sit on some rocks through a path in the trees, far away from the others at camp. They sat for a moment, taking in the sounds of the night, an owl hooting, crickets chirping. Hikaru suddenly leaned his head on his brother's shoulder.

Kaoru jerked his head up. "Um…Hikaru?"

"I've missed you." Hikaru said simply, snuggling in a little closer.

Kaoru put his arm around his brother, sighing. "I've missed you too."

Again, they sat for a moment, enjoying each other's company in a way they haven't in a long time. Hikaru didn't realize how much he needed his brother's warmth. Their awkwardness and avoidance had gone on long enough.

"I know what you were trying to do when you volunteered to stay with Airisu in her tent."

Kaoru dropped his arm. "You do?"

"I thought I asked you not to manipulate people anymore," Hikaru muttered. "Kaoru, you don't need to. I know you were trying to show me that I'd feel jealous, but you don't need to. I already know that I have feelings for Airisu. I don't need your meddling to help me realize it this time. I–yes, I needed help with Haruhi. But now I know what love feels like and…I'm feeling it now with Airisu."

Kaoru trembled a little bit. Hikaru's eyes widened. Kaoru was crying! Tears came to his own eyes. He pulled his brother into a hug. If they were hosting right now, their fans would surely be going crazy at this act of brotherly love. But none of that mattered. Suddenly, Hikaru felt very strong. He could face anything as long as Kaoru was beside him.

Kaoru said, "I knew that you liked her. It's just hard to actually hear it."

"I should've told you earlier," Hikaru muttered. "I'm sorry. I don't know…it's like this was something I had to do on my own, without you. For once."

"You don't need me anymore?"

"No! I was wrong! I need you now more than ever!"

The two boys sobbed in each other's arms for a moment. Hikaru could feel his shoulder getting damp from Kaoru. They pulled back again, calming down for a moment. Hikaru glanced at Kaoru's hair, the reflection of the moonlight in it making it look like it was glowing. There was something oddly dream-like about this atmosphere.

After a few moments, Hikaru spoke again. "Rentaro told me that he was leaving. He's transferring schools. He wanted me to tell the other hosts."

"He…well, that's probably what's best for everyone," Kaoru muttered rationally. "But how will Airisu feel about this?"

"I don't know. I also…earlier…" Hikaru blushed again at the memory. "I made a mistake. When I was talking with Airisu…I accidentally said I loved her. Then I rambled on and on with excuses that didn't make sense…and I don't know. She just left. But I think she knows I have feelings for her."

Kaoru frowned, tapping his chin. "Hm, when I was with her in the tent, she just mentioned still being angry at you. I had no idea she may have realized her feelings. Wow, she could be an amazing actress."

Hikaru grabbed Kaoru's collar. "What exactly did she say? She's still angry? What is she going to say when Rentaro left?"

Kaoru sighed. "Calm down, calm down. Don't worry! I've got it under control! I know you said to stop manipulating the situation…but I did something before you told me!"

"What?"

"I put a snake in Airisu's sleeping bag! So when she comes out screaming you can comfort her! It was actually Tamaki's idea to help you make up…"

"WHAT?"

Hikaru ran back into the camp, Kaoru following closely. Kaoru explained, "It's a pet snake, never bit anybody! Not venomous! Really, there's nothing to worry about!"

"How did you even bring that on this trip?"

"I didn't! Honey-senpai just had it!"

"That doesn't make any sense!"

Hikaru grabbed the tent flap and pulled it back, rushing into the tent. He went immediately to Airisu's sleeping bag, looking around.

"Um…Hikaru?" Airisu sat up, hair a tangled mess. "What are you doing?" She held the sleeping bag up over her chest.

"Don't move! There's…there's–"

His eyes widened as he saw some wiggling at the bottom of the sleeping bag. He grabbed it.

"Ouch! That's my leg!"

Hikaru let go and sat back, face hot. "S-sorry! Sorry! I…there's a…" he looked next to her, spotting the snake slithering out of the sleeping bag. "SNAKE!"

He pushed past her, grabbing the creature. It immediately writhed under his grip. He screamed, dropping the snake right on Airisu's face.

Airisu screamed as well, pushing herself out of her sleeping bag and rushing out of the tent. Hikaru teared after her, terrified to pick up the creature. Kaoru stood outside the tent, staring at them.

Hikaru snapped at him. "Kaoru! You get it!"

"What is with all the commotion?" Kyoya walked up to them, clearly irritated that he'd been awoken over some antics. The other host club members emerged from their tents, ruffled and drowsy.

Wait….Kaoru's plan. Hikaru looked at Airisu to see if she needed any comfort. She glared at him, his heart sinking as he realized this had only made things worse. He looked at her, observing her dark hair, messy and tangled. Her clothes were wrinkled. Hikaru did a double-take. She was wearing a hawaiian-looking shirt with striped shorts, so totally mismatched. She appeared to wipe her mouth, probably wiping drool away. He suddenly burst out laughing.

"Airisu, you look ridiculous!"

Kaoru joined in. "You clearly learned nothing about fashion from spending time with us."

Airisu crossed her arms. "S-stop! I just brought these to sleep in…"

Tamaki rushed over. "How can you two be so cruel! She's beautiful, under all that…" he giggled a little bit, then covered his mouth. "S-sorry!" Tamaki burst out laughing too.

Airisu's face was red at this point. She turned around, stomping into the woods.

Hikaru rushed over to her. "Where are you going?"

"I–away. From everyone."

"It's not safe to go by yourself. Besides, I can fix your hair for you," he suggested. For a moment he thought maybe he was too hard on her, that her feelings are actually hurt. Had he further dug his own grave?

But then she looked up at him, a small gleam in her eyes. She chuckled, just a little bit. "Is it really that bad? I don't have a mirror."

"Yeah! C'mon, I'll brush it for you."

"What about the snake?"

"Kaoru and Tamaki can worry about it," he muttered. "It's Honey-senpai's snake, anyway."

"It's not a wild snake? Why does Honey-senpai have a snake? I thought he only liked cute things?"

"It doesn't make any sense at all." He chuckled along with her again.

His breaths were quick. This was his chance to make it right with Airisu again.

He walked back to the tent that Rentaro and he had never put up, grabbing his bag, then bringing it back to Airisu. He dug out his brush, sitting her down on a log next to him. He ran it through her hair, the two of them silent for a moment. Despite its appearance, her hair really was soft. When Hikaru finished, he ran his hands through it, glancing at the back of her neck.

"I-I'm done," he said, glancing away.

Airisu felt her hair. "This is much better. Thanks!"

Hikaru paused, glancing over her mismatched clothes. Seriously, even the colors were off, orange, blue, yellow. How ugly! He suddenly started to take off his shirt.

Airisu blushed. "W-what are you doing? Keep your clothes on!" She covered her face with her hands.

"It's not what it looks like!" Hikaru handed his shirt to her. "This will match better. I can put something else from my bag on. Er, change behind a tree. I'll keep guard."

He turned his back to her, digging through his bag for another shirt and quickly pulling it on. He was the one who suggested it, but the idea that she would wear his shirt, one warm from his own skin, took his breath away. Would she actually do it?

Airisu emerged a moment later. Despite the dark, Hikaru stared at how his shirt was so oversized on her, almost covering her shorts. "Much better," he said.

Airisu sighed, sitting down on the log. "I don't know why you're so concerned with fashion. Why does it matter how your friends look?"

Hikaru took in a breath. "So are we?"

"What?"

"Friends? Are we friends?"

Airisu glanced at him, finally sighing. "Of course."

Hikaru's hand twitched, but he took in a deep breath, not wanting to overreact. Not wanting to make a mistake like before. He had to hide his urge to jump for joy, but he also had to have another serious conversation. "I have something to tell you. It might change that."

"What is it?"

"Rentaro left. He told me that he's transferring schools. He even left the camping trip. I-I wasn't able to help him."

"He told me he was thinking about leaving," Airisu said suddenly. "You're right, it has nothing to do with you. I guess…I guess it's finally over."

Suddenly, Airisu burst into tears. Hikaru jumped, mouth agape. W-what was happening? He knelt down, reaching out to put his hand on the log next to her. He looked up at her face. "Airisu…"

"I'm sorry, Hikaru. All you've done is look out for me, but I…"

Hikaru let her sob for a moment. He wanted to take her in his arms, but he was terrified to actually do it. He remained, frozen in place, watching her face as she cried, insides twisting at seeing her upset.

"The host club can still help. We may be able to convince Rentaro to stay…"

"No. He–when he talked to me earlier. His parents wanted him to drop out. I wanted him to stay because I thought it would help business with my father, but going against his parents' wishes…it made me more uncomfortable. It made everything more complicated."

"You must really care about your father's business," Hikaru muttered.

Airisu nodded. "Of course. I am his only child and thus his heir. I want to make him happy."

"I want to see you happy," Hikaru said, suddenly.

Airisu stared at him, her cheeks rosy. She wiped her eyes, suddenly looking embarrassed. Hikaru stood up, reminded of the situation earlier when he'd accidentally used the word love and wanting to avoid it again. "L-let's head back. They may need help with the snake, after all."

"How did Honey-senpai's snake even get in the tent?"

Hikaru gulped. "N-no idea. HAHAHA." What was with him and forcing laughter today?

Airisu frowned as if she didn't quite believe him, but followed him back to camp without another comment.

Neither of them could have expected the scene before them on their arrival. Kaoru and Airisu's tent was currently on fire, Mori and Honey throwing buckets of water on it, causing an excess of smoke. Hikaru's jaw dropped at the scene. How did that happen? Were they trying to get rid of the snake? He winced, watching most of the tent fabric disintegrate despite their efforts.

He glanced around more. Haruhi was laying on the ground outside of her tent, propped up on her elbow to look around. Her eyes were tired and her face was very pale. She should be inside resting.

Tamaki, near Haruhi, screamed, "SHE THREW UP ON ME? WHAT DO I DO?" before running straight into Kyoya, also getting some of the vomit on his best friend. Kyoya glared at Tamaki as if Tamaki had just threatened to end the entire Otori group.

On the other side of camp, Kaoru, covered in leaves and dirt as if he'd been crawling on the ground, was jumping on some leaves, reaching his hand out.

"I got it!" he shouted. Then he held up the snake in victory, as if he'd just won an award.

Hikaru's eyes twitched at the sight. What was going on? Had the host club always been this chaotic?

Airisu said, "I suppose we should help them." Then, she walked over to Haruhi, immediately sitting next to the girl and patting her shoulder. She looked back over at Hikaru, her gaze locking with his. He looked away suddenly.

He stood there, amongst the chaos, putting his hand to his mouth. Was Rentaro right? Was Airisu in love with him, too? She…she had apologized. They had made up! His heart felt like it would burst, filled to the brim with hope and excitement.

Hikaru walked over to Kaoru, wincing at the way Kaoru held the snake. "Um, what are you going to do with it?"

"I'll just put it back in Honey-senpai's backpack," he said, as if that were the most logical possible place to put it.

"Hooray! The fire's out!" Honey-senpai exclaimed.

Hikaru winced at the pile of charcoal and tent stakes. "Um, what are you going to do?"

Kaoru shrugged. "We'll have to put up your and Rentaro's tent. Airisu and I will stay with you!"

Hikaru's heart skipped a beat. "Um, what? But there's only room for two…"

"We can squeeze and fit three!" Kaoru said, grinning.

Hikaru raised an eyebrow. Were they really twins? Why did Kaoru seem like he'd manipulated the situation again? Stay the night…with Airisu next to him? Hikaru put his hand over his mouth at the thought.

"N-no. We couldn't possibly."

Kaoru put his arm around him. "We can and we will! I will be there too, so nothing will happen, right!? I'll pitch the tent, so you go and let Airisu know." Kaoru pushed Hikaru up to the girl, who was still rubbing Haruhi's back while the girl drank some water.

Hikaru went up to them, Airisu glancing up. "Yes?"

He squatted down, glancing at Haruhi. "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, a little better. I think I just need to sleep some more," Haruhi responded.

Hikaru patted her head. "You don't seem to have a fever."

Airisu glanced at Hikaru, then looked away when he made eye contact with her. Hikaru thought again about what Rentaro said, suddenly at a loss for words. Thankfully, Haruhi decided to turn in and Airisu helped her to her tent. Hikaru had a moment to gather his thoughts before Airisu came back over to him.

"Er… Airisu." Hikaru was already embarrassed, feeling his voice crack as he said her name.

"What is it?" she asked.

Hikaru bit his lip. "Um…about tonight. Your tent burned down so…um. Kaoru was staying with me. You're welcome to join us. Er, I'd like, er…." He trailed off, terrified of what he might say next.

He glanced at Airisu. To his surprise, she had put her hand over her mouth. It was dark, only a faint firelight allowing for visibility, but her face looked as red as the hot coals of her former tent. No, maybe it was just the lighting.

"I-um…" Airisu trailed off.

Hikaru's heart skipped a beat. Was she flustered? Just like how he felt?

Airisu took in a breath. "I suppose that's better than staying out in the open."

"Right…um, we can head over to help Kaoru."

Airisu nodded. Hikaru turned, hearing her light footsteps follow him over. He could hear his heart beating out of his chest. Could Airisu hear it? Kaoru had most of the tent poles up by the time they arrived, allowing them to pull the tent fabric over and stake it down.

Kaoru frowned. "Oh, our sleeping bags are gone now…"

Hikaru said, "Airisu, you can have mine. Kaoru and I will manage."

Airisu said, "Thank you."

They stood in silence for a moment, before entering the tent. Hikaru and Kaoru slept directly on the tent floor, while Airisu crawled into the sleeping bag. It was very tight, Hikaru in the middle. He easily leaned into Kaoru, but could feel the edge of Airisu's sleeping bag on his back. He purposely faced away from her, trembling. Did Airisu snore? How did she sleep?

He sat up suddenly. "I-I need some air."

Hikaru exited the tent, holding his hands to his head. This seemed so wrong! He sat on a log next to the hot coals, the only evidence that they had a fire here. He couldn't get what Rentaro said out of his head. Did Airisu like him? If…if she felt the same way, what would happen next? Would they date? Get married? No, that was stupid. He was getting way ahead of himself.

Knowing her sleeping habits also seemed like he was getting too ahead of himself. No, he would sleep out here, by the fire…

"Hikaru?"

His heart jumped in his chest. "Airisu?"

They were whispering so they didn't wake up anyone else. "Couldn't sleep?" she asked him.

"No…" he said. "Um, it's not your fault, though!"

Airisu sat next to him on the log. "I had trouble sleeping in there too. I wasn't even speaking with you this morning, and now…"

Hikaru nodded. To his surprise, Airisu continued. "Now it's back to how we were. I-I'm glad you found out about Rentaro. I don't know what I would have done…if we'd gone through with it."

Hikaru sighed. "I–I still would've been there for you. Even if…even if it did happen."

Airisu nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, I guess you're right."

They stared at the burning coals for a few moments. Hikaru was about to suggest heading back to the tent, then suddenly Airisu's head fell onto his shoulder. She was quietly snoring.

Hikaru felt the heat move through his body from his shoulder. He didn't dare move a muscle, afraid she would wake up. Afraid this moment would end. She really must be comfortable with him. He wanted her to return his feelings so badly it hurt. It'd taken him a long time to recover from Haruhi's rejection and he wasn't sure he would recover if it happened again. But more than anything, he didn't want to lose Airisu, like he almost had with this whole situation. He pondered that thought before also drifting off into sleep.

Kaoru emerged from the empty tent in the morning. He was the first one up, unable to sleep without Hikaru's presence next to him. He sighed, staring at Hikaru and Airisu, slumped onto each other, sleeping away by the fire. How romantic.

This was good, even if it was hard to see. In fact, this whole experience was good. There was a time when he wondered if Hikaru would ever want to be close to another person. After getting hurt from Haruhi, Kaoru was unsure Hikaru would ever move on. But it was clear here he was, trying again to get close to another person, even to the point of being hurt by her keeping anything from him.

Somehow, Kaoru knew this would happen to Hikaru first. He was the older brother, after all. Yet there was something about seeing Hikaru taking this first step, without him. He couldn't pinpoint it, other than a sour feeling in his stomach.

He walked over to Hikaru and Airisu, tapping both of their heads. He watched as each woke up, suddenly realizing what had happened. Both of them blushed and stood up, stepping back from the other, each flustered.

"I, um. S-sorry," Hikaru said.

"I, no. I'm sorry. Er, it was an accident. Clearly."

Kaoru stared at Airisu, then sighed. He certainly couldn't read her as well as he could Hikaru, but, it did seem that she may reciprocate Hikaru's feelings. If that was so…what would happen next? His stomach flipped.

Kaoru left the two of them, before taking his life in his hands to wake up Honey. He walked over to Honey and Mori's tent, opening the tent flap to peek in. Thankfully, Honey was already sitting up, talking to Usa-chan about eating cake.

"Honey-senpai, can we talk?"

"Yes, Kao-chan!"

Kaoru waited a moment for Honey to emerge. The two walked into the woods, away from the others. Kaoru let out a heavy sigh, leaning against a tree.

Honey looked at Kaoru. "Is this about what you told me before, when Rentaro first came on as a host?"

"Yes. Honey-senpai, what have I done?" Kaoru covered his face with his hands. "I knew having Rentaro around would help Hikaru get jealous, I knew if he made up with Airisu their friendship would be stronger but I didn't….I didn't really consider that Airisu might feel the same way. What if they start dating? Then what happens to me?"

Honey's huge eyes were sympathetic. "I thought this was what you wanted."

"No, it's not. I just want to stay with Hikaru forever. And why does he like someone like her? Someone involved in scandals, someone who gets angry at him simply for trying to protect her, who doesn't appreciate him and…"

"And someone who likes him back?" Honey guessed.

Kaoru took a deep breath. "He didn't even stay in the same tent with me last night. H-he slept outside with Airisu. I could barely sleep without him there, yet he fell asleep sitting up just because she was next to him. There's no going back! The way things used to be is gone now. I-I thought it would be okay, even though the boss and Haruhi started dating. Even though I'm not okay with it, I thought. I don't know. That it would still be the same. But it's not. And I don't know what to do."

"Have you spoken to Hika-chan about this?"

"No! We made up but…he'd…" Kaoru choked back some tears. "He'd choose her over me. I know he would. If I tell him I don't want him to date anyone, that I'm happy with how things are…he'd either go along with it and get hurt. Or he'd refuse, because he'd value Airisu's happiness over mine."

Honey handed Kaoru Usa-chan. "Here, give him a big hug."

Kaoru complied, Honey putting his arms around his friend. Kaoru wiped his tears on the stuffed rabbit's ears. "I was prepared for this, back when he confessed to Haruhi. But she was one of us, part of our family. And…and I cared for her just as much. I could understand. But with Airisu…"

"You don't have feelings for Airi-chan?" Honey asked a clarifying question.

"No. Not at all." Kaoru winced. "It was just easier with Haruhi. Well…mostly."

"Do you still have feelings for Haru-chan?"

"Yes…I…" Kaoru sighed, rubbing his temples.

"Kao-chan, I think you need to take some time for yourself. Do something selfish. You don't have to be directly involved in any of this, but you took it upon yourself to. You're exhausting yourself. Perhaps you should eat some cake!"

Kaoru absorbed Honey's words. He nodded, the wheels in his head beginning to turn. "You're right. Honey-senpai, I need you to tell the others that I'm taking a break from the host club."