Keep Hangin' On

Terminus a Quo

Thursday, September 4th

. . .

Takashi.

Seeing the entrance to his family's rock garden once again, the giant began to slow. As he approached the magnificent gate, his mind's inner workings began to advance, reminding his of his goal for the day.

Today, he thought, heart racing in anxiety at the thought. He could feel his muscles beginning to coil and tense at the impending task. As he reached the gate, Takashi felt anything but the calm feeling he had been intending on having upon completion of his morning run. One more time, he huffed, passing the gate.

. . .

Though he stood tall and proud, Takashi was anything but. In fact, he believed that he was more shaken up than he had ever been in his life. He was valiantly fighting off the blush that threatened to form, and it wasn't until he had grappled with it for a few moments before he realized that Haruhi hadn't replied.

Takashi's eyes had never moved from her face, but it was only then that he took a moment to process what he was seeing. Her eyes were widened, lips slightly parted. She looked taken aback,  he observed. Takashi blanched. Mitsukuni was wrong. This was a mistake. He closed his eyes in mortification, waiting for the soul-crushing words to hit him.

His eyes flew back open when he felt the warm body of another person hugging him around his waist. Having seldom received hugs (even from his cousin), he fumbled to return the gesture before his brain began to make connections again. Sooner than he could further contemplate his situation, she was speaking.

"Mori-senpai," she began, voice high with embarrassment equal to the level that he currently felt. "I-I've been told that I'm kind of slow on these things..." she paused, gulping and probably internally damning her stutter. "...But I think I might like you, too," she finished at a quiet volume, moving her face from where it was pressed up against his chest to showcase the blush that engulfed her face. It was then that Takashi lost his battle with his, a light red flushing his cheeks with color. Even still, he sighed in utmost relief, his shoulders sagging around her small frame. Blush refusing to recede, he bent down to lightly rest his head on her left shoulder when all tension left his body. Hearing a small squeak at this, Takashi's eyes widened and he pulled back, an apology on the tip of his tongue. Instead of finding a horrified look on Haruhi's face, he saw that the blush had not gone away, but instead spread to the tips of her ears.

She pulled back with her overstuffed bag gripped tightly in her hands, meeting his eyes briefly. "See you tomorrow, Mori-senpai!" She whispered, before scurrying out of the club room and carefully closing the door behind her.

The man stared at the door in shock, hand outstretched towards the whirlwind that had disappeared just moments before. Lowering it slowly, he stuffed both hands in his pockets, cracking a small smile at the exchange, his blush finally deciding to leave his face as his expression switched from one of embarrassment to one of fondness — however slight it seemed to the outside viewer (sans Mitsukuni) — he was still Mori, after all.

Mitsukuni.

Hearing the club door slam shut, the short senior smiled even wider than he was presently. He then proceeded to feign an exaggerated yawn, arms stretched out and all.

"I'm tired. I want to go home." He pouted in exaggeration.

"Whaaaaat? But we just started!" Tamaki whined, clutching a tiny silver top hat in his hand.

Honey's face dropped. Before he had even completed the quarter-turn needed to face Tamaki, the older host had already paled and interrupted with a, "B-but of course you can go home already, H-ha-he-honey-s-senpai! We can all play Monopoly tomorrow!" He ended with a nervous laugh, to which the twins looked at him questioningly. Turning to see the senior's face, however, they were quick to agree, and the short blond bounded off to his cousin happily.

. . .

The door to the limo had barely shut by the time Honey opened his mouth, mind rife with questions. He stopped himself from asking, though, upon seeing the fond smile on his cousin's face. Adopting a smile of his own, the sage senior decided instead to let the sensitive man adjust to the newness of the situation before pestering him. And pester him, he would.

Sooner than he'd expected, Takashi looked up at him, hints of a smile still left on his face. Honey's face again split in a knowing smile.

"Mitsukuni."

"Hmm?"

"Thank you."

"Mmm-hmm."