A Simple Commoner

Ouran 10 Days Challenge with @rubydragon16

It was never a surprise when an idea suddenly overtook Tamaki and he obsessively thought about it and meticulously planned each and every detail. For every person that ever knew the French male, this was a normal occurence. But this wasn’t just a compulsive idea! It was something that legitimately made him happy years ago, and with the way things were now, he figured it would be the best fit for now.

And this was one reason he called Haruhi.

Apart from generally wanting to see the girl, which was always something at the top of his mind even if he was trying to push those feelings on the back burner, he knew that she would be the best to share this grand plan of him. And lo and behold, he had the idea spread across his apartment on various sheets of paper with the inner-workings, the beginnings of a budget, location ideas, and even a name.

For once, Tamaki Suoh was not being entirely impulsive.

When there was a knock at his door, Tamaki wasted no time as he bounded towards his apartment’s entrance. He caught his reflection in the mirror beside the front door, a personal choice so he could check his appearance on his way out, and quickly adjusted his jacket so it hid his fated mark. There’s no need to worry Haruhi about this.

The smile that plastered itself onto his face was 100% real as he opened the door and took in the sight of his friend and her cute outfit. “Haruhi, hello!” he greeted, stepping back as he held the door open for her. “It’s fine, it’s fine. School is always more important.” Tamaki let the door close behind him as he stared at his apartment and the whirlwind of papers.

Did it always look this bad? “I normally wouldn’t ask you to come over as soon as you could, but i felt like I couldn’t waste any time with this brilliant idea that I had!”

    The site of the papers everywhere was a huge surprise to her. She’d never seen Tamaki’s home be this messy, unless he had his head in a plan, and his words even confirmed it. She simply glanced up at the blond before making her way into the apartment and picking up a random sheet of paper.

    The sheet in her hand was filled with needed expenses, estimated costs, rent, items circled of what was a necessity and stars next to other items. A small smile spread on her face the more she looked at the sheet and instantly moved towards the next one. 

    “Is this what I think it is?” She asked as she continued moving through the papers and reading them. Everything was pointing towards the starting of a Host Club, but not just a simple after school club like they had, but an actual business here in Wonderland. Past Haruhi would have been thrown off by the idea of planning to open a host club, but right now she found herself excited for it. Yeah, she had been kinda forced to be a host when she had first started at Ouran so she could pay back the vase she broke, but she had ended up enjoying it greatly and she knew just how much of a passion Tamaki had for it and she’d love nothing more than to help him with it.

“ Geez! You’re cruel. ”

                 Hikaru clicked his tongue ins faux annoyance at her words. What did she mean that she was grateful for him showing up uninvited? If anything, she should be grateful for his presence all the time! If he was in her place, he would very much be grateful without a doubt. But he understood her in a way. Haruhi must have been having a tough time without anyone to talk to. 

At the mention of his own brother, Hikaru’s expression turns grim as he slowly shakes his head. Kaoru was gone—they had been separated from each other and he spent the time he had in Wonderland just trying to find clues as to where his younger brother was. What if Kaoru was out there? Lost and afraid? He’s never seen the younger looking independent. At least, not that Hikaru was aware of. Where was Kaoru? Was he eating properly? Sleeping well? 

“ No. We got separated… ”

The ginger gave her a faint smile as they broke apart from their reunion hug. Looking around, he chuckles.

“ You still haven’t answered my question: the roses, Haruhi. How much? ”

He was unsure if repeating the question was going to keep Haruhi from thinking of her own worries. But, he would like to try. It was the least he could do as one of her best friends. Maybe when she’s truly ready to speak about such a thing, she would tell him after being asked. If there was one thing that Hikaru knew about Haruhi: it was that it’s best not to pry an open wound when it came to her. Strong as she may be, she was still a human being that held so much in.

     Haruhi couldn’t help but laugh at his reaction, it had been just as she had expected and it was helping lift her spirits. She really had missed her best friends more than she had expected, she’d keep that to herself though, wouldn’t want him to milk that for all its worth and more. 

    Hearing that he had gotten separated from his twin hurt her greatly. The only time she had seen them apart was during their stupid fight, but that hadn’t even been a real separation since they were still so close to eachother due to living together and having the same class. She couldn’t even imagine how he must have been feeling right now, or imagine how worried Kaoru was currently. 

    “Oh no....he must be so worried about you....Luckily he still has the others to help him through the separation, and I’m here to help you.” She tried to offer him a small reassuring smile. There was probably more to their story but she wouldn’t press him since he obviously didn’t want to talk about it or he wouldn’t have tried to change the subject so quickly.

Her laughter was like a sweet melodious symphony, and Tamaki felt his own worries melting away as the sound filled his ears. There it is, he thought, a smile slowly caressing his features. He would fight a thousand storms if it meant that he could keep Haruhi happy like this.

Wait… What was the probability of beating a storm into a fight? Would an iron rod help him win? Probably. Let’s do it later.

“Nonsense, Haruhi. You’re absolutely stunning when you wear a dress and I-” The blonde psued as his brow furrowed together. “Well, you’re always pretty, no matter what you wear” Tamaki finished, clearing his throat. His heart quickened its pace and he closed his eyes as he tried to slow it. That’s odd. “Save your money, Haruhi, and get something that you would like. Don’t waste your money on something friviolous that you might never wear.”

    Haruhi felt her cheeks darken slightly at his words. She didn’t understand why she had gotten so flustered suddenly. This wasn’t the first time she’d heard such a compliment before, and it wasn’t the first time she’d heard something like that from him either, yet here she was, red faced with her heart fluttering suddenly. 

    It must have been due to her heightened emotions thanks to the storm. 

    “Ah, thank you Tamaki-senpai, but you’d honestly make a very beautiful girl. You were the most stunning that time you all dressed up to try and get me to not transfer to Lobelia’s.” Her words were followed by soft laughter as she remembered that day in the club and how the twins and Honey chased her around asking to be called big sister.

Thunder rumbled through the apartment, and Tamaki momentarily thought that a plane was flying precariously too close to the building as it shook. A muscle tensed in his neck as he raised his head, blue eyes gazing curiously towards the ceiling, almost as if he was expecting to see a skylight and the approaching jet. His heart thudded against his rib cage as his attention returned to Haruhi.

“Anytime, Haruhi.” God, he wished he had something to help deafen any of the storm’s abrupt noises. He knew if he searched, he could find something around the girl’s apartment. There was no time to waste by leaving the girl by her lonesome, and he didn’t dare let go of her. This hug, this simple hold, was the best he could do for her. So he tightened his grip and took a deep breath.

Gasping at the girl’s comment, Tamaki pulled his head away as he stared down at the girl in front of him. “What? You? No evening gowns?” He feigned a distressed sigh. “How will I ever get my yearly crossdressing fix? You know how well I look in a dress,” he said, a laugh rumbling in his throat. “I suppose I’ll wear whatever other clothes you have then.”

    His instant feigned dismay made her laugh  earnestly, turning her head into his chest in an attempt to mute her laughter slightly. Tamaki’s silliness never failed to brighten her mood and make her laugh, forgetting her troubles completely for the moment. 

                  The sound of Haruhi’s muffled sobs broke Hikaru’s heart. She was in pain and she didn’t allow herself to express that and cry outwardly (that was one of the things that Hikaru shared with her). He didn’t know how to console his friend anymore than just hugging her tighter and letting her soak up his shirt. She must have been in so much pain. His heart: it hurt for her.

Of all the host club members, Haruhi had proven herself to be the strongest in Hikaru’s eyes. No matter how much he told himself and everyone that he deserved that spot, Haruhi was the strongest. She held everyone together without any regard for herself sometimes and Hikaru respected and disliked that about her at the same time. Softly stroking her hair, he lets her cry it out—not caring where they were in this space and time. She deserved a comforting hand. Her time in Wonderland must have been rough without anyone else around, and it almost made him feel selfish for always thinking of only reuniting with Kaoru. 

“ You’re okay, I got you. ”

Hikaru proceeded to console his friend by whispering words of encouragement before chuckling.

“ I’m as real as I’m gonna get, Haruhi. So you better get used to me being here. ”

The young man slowly lets go of the brunette, softly looking at her in the eyes and gently wiping the impending tears that threatened to come out of her doe-like eyes. Even though his strengths weren’t centered around words, he always was adept at showing his feelings through his actions. He stays quiet just for her, hoping it was enough for her to know that he’d be there for her if she wanted to talk.

    Haruhi couldn’t help but feel slightly embarrassed that Hikaru had realized she had been crying, but knew there was nothing she could do about it. She simply held him tighter as he tried to console her and it brought a small smile to her face.

    She was so grateful he had shown up, even if it pained her to see him there without Kaoru. At least having one of them there would help her so much and that was already proving fruitful if just the sight of him had let her break the damn she had built and let her cry everything out silently. She was already feeling slightly relieved from the stress at least, she knew the ache she felt in her heart would take longer, but that was ok, she could deal with that slowly.