Episode 3

The Job of a High School Host!

The loud chiming of the clock tower echoed through the school, perking the ears of Ouran Academy's student body until it reached an unsuspecting Haruhi Fujioka. The female student dressed in the male uniform gasped.

Crap! Is it already that late?

Groaning, Haruhi flipped the cover of her notebook shut. She packed away the rest of her stuff quickly, put the books she no longer required on the reshelving pile, and hoofed it out of the library. Figures that the only library she could find room to study in was the one furthest away from the Music Room.

"I'm never going to hear the end of it if I show up late," the brunette huffed as she ran down the hallway. It was after school hours, so she wasn't worried about being stopped by the teachers. It seemed that once school was over with, the students could rid themselves of every rule the school imposed on them.

Slowing to a stop, Haruhi paused in front of Music Room 3. Gritting her teeth, knowing what was about to happen, she grasped the handle and pulled down. Surprisingly, instead of the rose petals that had rained down on her yesterday, Haruhi was met with a wave of pleasantly warm air, making the chilly host shiver in appreciation. However…

"What? Where?" The music room had changed. Instead of the usual couches and tables, the room looked like an exotic hotel paradise. Palm trees, colorful flowers, a few toucans… the works. "How…"

"Oh, never mind, its just Haruhi."

"At least you finally made it."

Ignoring the twin's jab, Haruhi pulled out her pocket sized calendar and made a show of looking at the date closely, "Now, I could be wrong, but my calendar still says it's early spring…" She craned her head back and peered out the large windows at the crystal blue sky and budding cherry blossoms, "And would you look at that? Spring."

Tamaki smirked and began his usual tirade, "Shivering in misery and fearing the cold is no way to enjoy the first days of spring! Why put our chilly little kittens through such nonsense when we have the best heating system in the world? We've turned this place into Nirvana. A balmy tropical island of evERLASTING SUMMER!"

"That's funny, because I'm feeling a massive chill right now."

Hurt by her comment, the host king fell away and curled up in some far off corner of the room. However, he only had a few moments to wallow in self pity before the guests arrived and he was forced back into his happy smile. Fourteen minutes later, the Host Club was in full swing. At the moment, it was Haruhi's turn to go around and clear off any dirty tea cups from the other host's tables or refill their tea pots as needed. As always, she went to Tamaki's table first, just to get it out of the way.

Unfortunately, she also got a full face of his hosting.

She caught the tail end of his whispered devotions before letting the girl's chin slide off his palm. Tamaki's other guests weren't acting jealous, though. Princess Ayankoji must've been a fluke.

Tamaki straightened up, not in the least bit flustered by his previous actions, "Oh, I almost forgot to mention! Next week, the Ouran Host Club is sponsoring a party."

Haruhi's eyebrows crinkled in confusion and she turned back towards Tamaki's table. We're throwing a party? Are we allowed to do that? Exactly what goes on at a rich person's party?

In the other direction, another guest was asking the same kind of questions buzzing in her head. It was one of the twin's guests, so Haruhi drifted over and pulled the empty tea pot off of the table while they answered.

"We've rented the school's largest hall for the big evening."

"It's the perfect place for dancing, especially with all the people we're inviting."

Haruhi backed away from the table as Hikaru reached over and tilted his brother's face uncomfortably close, his voice dropping to a husky whisper. The two girls sitting right across from them dissolved into a pile of screams while Haruhi simply watched it all with a blank face. It was odd how quickly she was growing used to these acts of weirdness.

The brunette slowly made her rounds before coming to a stop in front of a bar-like pavilion. Kyoya leaned up against the countertop beside her and for a moment they watched the proceedings in silence.

"Hey, Kyoya-senpai? I've been meaning to ask about the outfits you guys are wearing."

"Well, let it never be said that the Host Club does not take theme days lightly. And besides, showing some skin proves popular with the ladies."

"Huh. Makes sense. Were you the one who came up with this tropical paradise idea?"

"I have no decision making authority. That power remains with Tamaki, as the club's president. All of our policies are dictated by him as well. But," he adjusted his glasses with a small evil smile playing on his face, "I guess there's no harm in admitting to casually slipping a Bali photo book onto his desk."

Haruhi quickly looked away so he couldn't see the fearful look on her face. So he's the real brains behind the operation. Like a shadow of 'King' Tamaki. I wonder if anyone else has made the connection… or if he uses it to his advantage more than we know.

Filled with a sudden urge to get as far away from the "Shadow King" as possible, Haruhi quickly moved across the room and found herself seated with a few girls herself. Another table off to her left side, Honey was showing off his flower lei. He threw a few lei's onto his guests before climbing up Mori-senpai's torso to do the same.

There it was again. The little itching in the back of Haruhi's head. I swear I recognize them! But from where? Ugh, it's driving me insane!

"Uh, Haruhi?" One of her guests gained her attention, "Aren't you going to wear a tropical outfit like the other boys?"

"I'd like to see that!"

Oh crap! "Oh, well, no. I, um, I just don't think it's appropriate to wear anything but early spring attire in early spring, you know?" And like hell they're going to put me in one of those monkey suits! Besides, it's not like I can be walking around with a bare chest like the others…

Thankfully, the girls bought it. They quickly began to practically entertain themselves, coming up with little scenarios involving the host club and early spring cherry blossoms.

"Excuse me. I hate to disturb but I think it's time for the hosts to switch clients."

The brunette jumped slightly at the new voice, "Oh, I'm sorry, you must be my next appointment Miss…" Haruhi trailed off as she saw the girl standing next to her. What…

"My name is Kanako. Kanako Kasugazaki."

Haruhi's chin was tilted up until she was face to face with the girl, "You're even cuter than I expected." She watched as Kanako's lips continued moving, but all Haruhi could hear was white noise. That is, until Kanako sat down and started sipping tea. Haruhi gave her head a minute shake and went back to hosting, a little embarrassed with her actions.

*Timeskip*

Two hours later, the Music Room was empty of all guests. A brilliant sunset shone through the window as the hosts planned out the party taking place next week. Until the night of the party, the hosts would be spending an extra hour at the school making arrangements. Everyone had to help pitch in their own ideas and assistance, and it was non-negotiable.

Well… except for Tamaki, apparently.

"Hey boss! How about you stop stuffing your face with ramen and actually help us with the party planning?"

"Does it really bother you that Princess Kasuga has taken a liking to Haruhi? She's had the Host-hopping disease for a while now, why are you so surprised?"

Haruhi blinked, "The host... what?"

"Host-hopping disease."

"AKA the Never-the-Same-Boy-Twice disease."

"Usually our customers chose a favorite host then see them regularly, however, Princess Kanako tends to changes her favorites… on a regular basis. Just last week she switched from Mori-senpai to Tamaki, and now she's fixed her sight on you."

Tamaki's stranger-than-usual behavior now made sense. Haruhi's face fell back to her 'I'm not impressed' look. I seem to be wearing this look more and more often now.

"So he's upset that I took her from him?"

"SHUT UP! THAT'S NOT WHAT BOTHERS ME AT ALL! I COULDN'T CARE LESS!"

"You know, shouting in my face isn't going to make me like you any better…"

Tamaki ignored Haruhi's comment, "I'm running out of patience, Haruhi! It's time you started dressing like a girl!"

Haruhi leaned back a bit, "That is not the direction I thought you were heading…"

"I just don't understand it! How can you can be so popular with the ladies when you yourself are a lady! And how are we the only ones who know of it?"

The twins appeared behind him, "Well, it's actually pretty easy, Boss."

"She opted out of gym class and the attendance numbers are all mixed together."

"So unless she outright tells them, with her looks Haruhi does look like a boy."

Tamaki wailed, "Why!? Why would you make yourself look like a boy, Haruhi? You probably looked so cute before..."

The other boys murmured their curiosity as well, so Haruhi explained, "One of the kids from my neighborhood stuck some gum in my hair as a joke the day before school started. It's a real pain to get gum out of long hair, so I decided to cut it all off and not deal with it anymore. I didn't care if I looked like a dude, you know? It doesn't bother me at all."

"Ah! A girl should never refer to herself as a dude or cut their hair without care! MOMMA! Haruhi's using those dirty boy words again…" Momma?

"Okay, addressing the elephant in the room. Who's Momma?"

"Based on club position, I assume he means me…"

Haruhi let a small snort slip through at the resigned tone of Kyoya's voice before walking away from the sobbing boy, "Well, as long as we know he's not going to be of any use, can we call it a day? I have homework to do."

"Yeah. Just one question though. We usually have dance practices before we host a party. Have you had formal dancing experience?"

She nodded, "It's been a really long time, but yeah, I know a few dances. Kind of. But I'm honestly not interested in going to a party, so if it doesn't have anything to do with my quota I'd much rather be excused from attending..." she stopped speaking. The crying behind her had stopped.

As if on cue, Tamaki spoke again as if he hadn't been weeping like a toddler experiencing a tantrum a few seconds ago, "Definitely not. If you want to be a host that badly, you going to have to show us how far you're willing to go, Haruhi! I order you to master dancing the waltz in one week, and you will demonstrate your skills at the party. If you don't reach our expectations I'll tell the entire school that you're a girl and knock you back down to errand boy!"

Haruhi gasped and took a step back. Of course it's the waltz. The one dance I have trouble with… Mom, please send me some help. Help would be nice...

*\/*

"Quick, quick, slow… Quick, quick, slow…" Haruhi stared at her feet with a concentration that would only be rivaled by her taking a math test. Still, she and Princess Kanako glided somewhat smoothly across the tiled floor, music and Honey's delighted squeals in their ears.

"Very good, Haruhi. But be sure to look the lady in the eye when you're dancing."

"Uh, right. Sorry." Haruhi took a deep breath and looked up. Her gaze met Kanako's… and the next moment the two were on the ground.

"I'm so sorry, Miss Kasugazaki! Ah…" the girl beneath her had just looped her arms around Haruhi's neck and pulled her down closer. Oh god. Oh god. Oh god.

"It's okay, Haruhi." For a second, all Haruhi could do was stare into her client's eyes, before forcing her gaze on the tile floor instead.

"Uh… Can I help you up?"

"Thank you." Once the two were out of the awkward position, Kanako gripped Haruhi's hand and pulled her closer, "Haruhi, you never meet my eyes for more than a few seconds. Is something wrong?"

Haruhi glanced over and saw that the other hosts were too busy with each other to pay much attention to the dancing girls, "Well, it's just… your eyes look a lot like my sister's."

"Oh, really? You must miss her terribly."

"Yeah. Whenever I see your eyes I get a terrible pang of homesickness in my stomach. She would always look at me like I was the light of her world. Even if I got on her nerves or said something stupid, there would always be a small twinkle in her gaze that told me she'd always be by my side, no matter who I was for or against. I know it might be a little strange for us to be that close, but we've been this way since I was born. I dunno... I just miss her a lot."

Kanako moved the two into a dancing position again, "Haruhi? Did your sister teach you how to dance?"

"Um, yes, she did."

"Well, why don't you pretend I'm her for a few minutes. Pretend you're back with your sister when she was teaching you the waltz." Haruhi blinked for a bit, then sucked in a breath and looked at Kanako's eyes. They're almost exactly the same. Same shape. Same kindness. The only difference is the shade of brown… but then again Nēchan's eyes would always turn golden in the sunlight…

Haruhi's feet moved on automatic, her sister's words of advice drifting through her head.

'Dancing is like singing or reciting poetry with your body, Haruhi. Keep the music's tempo in your chest. Let it pulse there for a moment, then let it flow through your movements. Each pulse is a checkpoint now. Move your feet in time with the pulse. If you're especially nervous, breathing in and out every four beats keeps your body relaxed. You don't want to be dancing too stiffly, or your partner will be able to tell you're uncomfortable. Let your body breathe.'

"Wow, Haru-chan! You're really good!"

"Huh?" Haruhi came to a stop and noticed all the boys looking at her. Even Kanako had a slightly surprised look on her face. "What?"

"Well… you were stumbling over your own two feet a few seconds ago."

"But just now you were twirling Princess Kasugazaki around the room like it was second nature to you."

Haruhi smiled softly and led her dancing partner to a table, "Thank you so much for allowing me to practice with you, I really appreciate it. Your tidbit about pretending my sister was teaching me really helped. Sorry... if that was weird for you."

Kanako giggled and leaned forward, "Oh, it was no trouble! I'm just glad I got to spend some alone time with you." Haruhi could only stare. Well, there's no real way to carry on that conversation… is there?

Thankfully for Haruhi, she didn't need too, for the very next moment Kanako looked down at her tea cup and started complimenting it. She even knew the name. Ginori? Now that sounds like an illness.

Kyoya drifted over to continue the conversation with Kanako, probably well aware that Haruhi was out of her depth. She just let him do the talking. She must really be into tableware. I wonder how she's learned all of this stuff?

From behind her, the Music room doors opened, "Hello? I'm here with the new tea cups you ordered!" Haruhi looked around as the door fell shut. A tall brunet boy stood in the doorway, lugging a large yellow box. He was wearing an Ouran uniform without the blue jacket, instead replacing it with a yellow sweater, but he had an easy going smile.

"Ah, thank you very much. Every item that you've chosen for us has been extremely popular with the ladies. I'm quite impressed." Woah, woah. Kyoya is impressed? Who is this guy? Jesus?

Wanting to know more about the person who Kyoya admitted to being impressed by, Haruhi walked over to the other boys, "So, you sell tea sets?"

"No, I'm just a regular student." He handed the box over to Haruhi, who took it without complaint, "Can't you tell by the uniform? I'm delivering these from my family's business. Just trying to help out where I can, you know!"

"Oh Haruhi, you're so funny! But I can't really blame you for not knowing he's the heir of a first class company," Haruhi and the boys looked over at Princess Kasuka with confusion, "After all… he doesn't really look the part, does he?"

The room filled up with awkwardness faster than if Kanako had started yodeling. Kyoya tried to relieve it by sharing as many details about the Suzushima trading company he knew, but no one paid him much attention. Suzushima was staring at Kanako, who'd turned back around in her seat to stare into her tea cup, and Haruhi watched the two of them. Is there a backstory here I don't know about?

"...He has a great eye for fine china, don't you Suzushima?"

At being addressed, Suzushima managed to tune himself back into the conversation, "You think? I've still got a lot to learn, but thank you."

"I've heard you were leaving soon to study abroad. Is that true?"

"Yes, next month I'm heading over to England. Don't worry, I'll still be able to recommend what tea sets to send your way while I'm gone. Speaking of which, I'd better go now." And just like that, he left. The mood he left behind wasn't very pleasant either. Haruhi looked over at Princess Kasuka. She was hunched over her table, hands still clasped around her full tea cup. Tamaki walked over and muttered something to the girl, who looked up at him in confusion.

"So," Haruhi drew the word out, "It looked like you knew that guy-"

Kanako jolted in her seat, scrambling up from her chair frantically and spitting out denials like it was her job. A few high-pitched well wishes later and she'd made a beeline out the door.

"Hm…"

"Haru-chan!" Honey-senpai took a flying leap landed on her back, "Guess what, you were right! They do know each other! Suzushima is Kasuga-chan's fiancé! How did you guess?"

"Kyoya?

"How long have I known about the two of them being engaged?" The glasses wearing host pulled out his black journal, "Well, as I conduct general searches on all of our customers, I've known since Princess Kasuka became a client of ours. I didn't think the information would benefit us so I didn't feel the need to share it. But from what I can discern from it now, having witnessed that episode... Let's see, Toru Suzushima. Outstanding grades, fair social status, reliable. Unfortunately-"

"-he doesn't have much presence-"

"-and he's faint hearted."

"So, in other words, he's boring." Snap! went the journal. Haruhi felt a couple beads of sweat appearing on her face. If they're so judgmental of other guys, how on earth are they so popular throughout the entire school? Haruhi was liking her fellow club members less and less.

"Suzushima is a good boy, right?"

"Yeah." Well, at least some of them are kinder than others.

"Alright everyone, we'll have to work on our strategy."

"Which one?"

Tamaki flipped his hair out of his face, "Men, it is our responsibility, as members of the elite Ouran host club, to make every girl happy!"

*\/*

One week later

"It is so good to see you here tonight, my little lambs. The Ouran Host Club would like to bid you...welcome!"

The entire hall was suddenly ablaze with light. Magnificent chandeliers hung from the grand ceiling, the crystals glittering enchantingly. A string ensemble began their first piece as background music to the beginning of the night's festivities. The girls in the audience applauded as the host club straightened up in sync.

Kyoya's voice rung out across the hall, giving out what sounded like a well practiced speech. He welcomed the ladies to dance with the hosts to their hearts content, and that at the end of the night one of them would be crowned as 'Queen'. The reward? A passionate kiss on the cheek from Tamaki. As the girls fell over themselves at the idea of being kissed on the cheek, Haruhi felt her fake smile dipping lower and lower.

"Haruhi!" The twins moved to her side, "Show some enthusiasm!"

"Sorry you guys, but I'm not really feeling it tonight. I'm not exactly used to events like this. The only parties I ever went to were the festivals held in my neighborhood park and whenever Jin invited her friends over."

"I don't know if you could really consider those "parties" or not. Well, perhaps until you're feeling up to dancing you should get yourself something to eat. We have quite a spread tonight."

Haruhi stopped scowling, "A… spread?" The brunette nibbled at her lower lip. Jin used to bring fancy stuff home for her, but for the past year… there was one treat Haruhi had been missing. "Um… do you have fancy tuna?"

The boys gasped around her.

Uh oh.

Tamaki flipped off of the top balcony down to where the twins were cuddling Haruhi, demanding Kyoya to order fancy tuna even as he was dialing a number on his phone. Haruhi felt her face grow red with a mixture of anger and embarrassment, doing her best to block out the twins repeating the words 'you poor little thing'. Damn these rich jerks. Why did I even say anything? Damn it. Damn it all.

After a few more seconds, she wriggled out of the tight embrace, "Okay, that's enough! No, go attend to the guests before we have a riot on our hands!" Before the boys could protest, she turned on her heel and marched down the steps. The girls squealed and Haruhi found herself being hauled onto the dance floor.

The first half hour passed by in a blur. Haruhi only danced with two girls before she managed to sneak away to the side. The other boys didn't have that luxury, but they didn't seem to mind it. They were probably used to dancing for hours at a time at fancy dinner parties, so Haruhi wasn't very surprised. Jin used to be able to dance for an hour straight before needing to take a break.

Haruhi felt her smile do a funky dip and rise as she recalled her sister. Almost. Almost time. Less than a month.

"Hello, Haruhi."

"Hm?" She turned her head and saw none other than Princess Kanako.

"I've been looking for you. Do you think maybe you could give me my first dance of the night?"

"Yeah, of course." While Haruhi would deny it until her dying day, she was actually having a bit of fun being asked to dance by the girls. It was nice to know that her presence was actually desired. Of course, as the two were making their way onto the dance floor, everything had to go sideways. Haruhi felt as though she'd been hit in the stomach by a freight train.

"WOAH!" The scenery passed by too fast for her to understand where she was being taken. All Haruhi knew was that whoever was carrying her away was tall with long arms. Three seconds later, they exited the dance hall and slowed down to a walking pace.

"Okay, Haru-chan! Let's hurry and find the others!" Honey-senpai. Which means the person carrying me is-

"Takashi! I think this is the room!" The three walked in through another door and Mori-senpai set her down. Her first order of business on her own two feet? Giving her senpai the best glare she could muster.

"What was that? I thought the point of this whole operation was to do it without drawing attention to ourselves! Why didn't you just come over and politely ask if I could talk with you guys for a few minutes! Princess Kasuka wouldn't have noticed anything suspicious about it! And then we wouldn't have been seen running out of the dance hall like the devil was at our heels! Can't you guys do anything normal?"

The other boys seemed unaffected by Haruhi's outburst. Hikaru simply shoved a bag into her arms, and pushed her past a pair of curtains, telling her to get changed. Sh stayed in that spot for a moment to reel in her anger. Screaming at them won't fix anything. I'm on the clock. Might as well get this thing over with. With one last deep breath, Haruhi began undressing and Kyoya went over the details of their plan again.

Haruhi rolled her eyes, she knew the plan forwards and backwards already. Making a final adjustment to her wig, she stepped out of the changing room with her mouth set in a straight line. Mom, I know you can see this. If there is anything you can do to help me out, I'd greatly appreciate it. Please just… ask for a favor or something. Haruhi sat down in the makeup chair without making a fuss, knowing it wouldn't have helped anything even if she had.

The twins began piling cosmetics onto her face, muttering about how it was somewhat unsettling. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes again. From personal experience, she knew that fixing makeup that had already been applied was ten times harder than just putting it on right the first time.

Behind her, the door slammed open, "Gentlemen, here you all are! What are you doing? The guests are-!" Tamaki stopped in his rant as the twins gave Haruhi the thumbs up and she stood from the chair. Immediately Haruhi felt unbalanced and clutched the table in front of her. Stupid heels. Stupid hosts. I swear I'm going to face plant any minute now.

"Wow, you look so cute!"

"My face feels heavy and it's hard to walk in these shoes. Do not speak to me."

"Good luck, Haruhi!" She was too busy using her arms to balance to create a scathing retort. Instead, Haruhi just stumbled to the classroom the hosts had chosen the day before to have her meet with Suzushima.

Thankfully, she made it without injury, though her pride was a bit bruised. Taking a breath, she opened the door and peered inside. There was Toru Suzushima. He was staring out the window at the cherry blossoms with a face of someone who was lost in thought. At the sound of the door creaking open, he turned at gave Haruhi a good look.

He lifted a few pieces of paper in front of him, "Wait... are you the one who wrote this letter? Wow, you're not at all like I imagined."

"Letter?" Without a word, Suzushima handed it over, probably thinking she wanted to clarify that it was her letter they were talking about. Haruhi took one look and almost threw up. 'I'm in love-love...I want to rendezvous with you on Noah's Ark… What the heck is this?! Who could've written such a stupid letter?' Haruhi almost felt personally insulted as she continued to read the "love letter". Honestly, as members of a host club, you would think the boys would be able to portray a secret admirer better.

I'm going to be sick if I have to pretend I'm actually like the girl who wrote this letter.

"Excuse me, but have we met somewhere before?"

Haruhi jumped, "Ah! No! Not at all!"

Suzushima went very quiet for a moment before speaking again, "I'm sorry. I'm flattered by your letter but, I'm afraid I don't feel the same way. You see… another girl already has my heart."

"Oh. You have a girlfriend."

His lips twitched upward in a humourless smile, "Unfortunately, no. Once upon a time, maybe, but I bet she's completely over me." He looked back at the cherry blossoms, "In all honesty, I'm glad. She'd be much happier with someone more self confident than me." Haruhi stayed silent. This was going better than she thought it would. It seems like his feelings were so strong it only took someone willing to listen for his true feelings about Kanako to come out. It's a little heartbreaking that these kids have absolutely no one to talk to about their real feelings…

"We're supposed to marry, and I would love to if only she felt the same way. So, if she's been doomed to spend the rest of her life by my side, then maybe by traveling the world I'll become the confident man she needs. I know it sounds a little selfish, but I wonder if she'll wait for me..."

"That is selfish of you." Suzushima made a noise like someone had punched him in the stomach, but Haruhi kept the heat on, "Does she know that you feel this strongly about her? Maybe she would wait if she knows you're doing it for her. You'll never know if you don't tell her how you feel, so that's what you need to do. You said you were trying to become a confident man, right? Why not start by telling the girl you love how much she means to you? After all, once you've decided to change then you've already begun your transformation."

Suzushima stared at her in wonder and lifted his hand. Perhaps to hug her, or maybe even just touch her face to see if she was real, but at that moment the sound of the door opening captured both of their attentions.

And there stood Kanako.

"Uh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt, I just…" tears trickled down her cheeks as she turned and ran.

Suzushima brushed past Haruhi and hurried out the door, "Kanako. Kanako!"

Due to her heels, Haruhi was only able to wobble slowly after him. She stared after them, her heart compressing. The soft thuds of footsteps behind her brought Haruhi back to reality.

"Why did I let you talk me into this? Did you see her face…"

A warm hand gently rested on her shoulder, "But he ran after her."

Or maybe… we did just fine.

"Come on. Let's get you out of that get up. We'll need to be on the balcony in a few minutes." Haruhi nodded and walked back to the classroom.

*Timeskip*

It only took about seven minutes to quickly scrub off her makeup and pull Haruhi's tuxedo back on, which was about the time Kanako and Suzushima made it out into the courtyard. They watched as Suzushima grabbed her wrist and the couple stumbled to a stop.

Four separate spotlights flicked on, focused on the two, as the balcony doors were opened, "Ladies and Gentlemen…" the guests flooded out as Tamaki made his announcement, "It's time for the final dance of this evening's festivities. The last waltz of the night has been chosen by the host club for... this couple."

For a second, nothing happened. Suzushima released Kanako's wrist and she took a step backwards. They faced each other in heavy silence before he pulled his right hand up to his chest. Apparently steeling his nerve, he paused before performing a deep bow.

"Princess Kasuka? May I have this dance?"

For another second, Haruhi worries that Kanako would reject him.

But she needn't have worried.

"Yes."

The two danced seamlessly together, like they had been born for nothing more than this moment. It didn't look like Kanako was touching the ground at all. The other guests around them were cooing at the tender scene while the host club watched in satisfaction. Another happy guest. Another happy couple. Two more happy lives. If this is what it means to be a host… I suppose there were plenty of worse clubs I could be a part of.

The blissful moment was interrupted horrifically as Haruhi quickly ducked to avoid being hit by Tamaki's flailing arms, "May this awkward couple be forever blessed!" Whoever you end up with is going to be in the most awkward couple of the century. I pity the poor soul.

The twins slipped up behind her and Tamaki, announcing Princess Kanako Kasugazaki as the queen of the ball. And while Haruhi found it sweet to give the girl the best night of her life, should couldn't help but wonder. When did they get microphones?

Still, she joined the others in applauding for dumbstruck girl in the courtyard. The twins named her prize. A kiss on the cheek from-

"Haruhi Fujioka will stand in for Tamaki!"

The brunette let out a strangled sort of sound as the redheads cackled. Suzushima spoke a few calming words to Kanako, probably telling her it wouldn't really mean anything, but Haruhi had a very different train of thought, "There is no way you can make me kiss her. I'm not doing it."

"We'll cut your debt by one-third." The tally marker in her head quickly did the calculations. A whole one-third?! Well... I guess if it is just a kiss on the cheek it's not that big of a deal.

Sucking in a breath, Haruhi made her descent. A kiss on the cheek. Just a small little kiss on the cheek. That's all it is. Jin has kissed my cheek many times, and vice versa. It's not a big deal. I can do this. She and Kanako were right in front of each other now. I can do this. She guided the other girl's face into the proper position, leaning in. I can d-

Suddenly she was lip-locking with Kanako. They stared at each other for two more seconds before jumping apart, hands to their mouths. The guests above them screamed, someone collapsed behind Haruhi, and Kanako quickly looked at her fiancé to see if he was angry. Thankfully, he wasn't. Haruhi took a few seconds to recollect her thoughts. The kiss hadn't been... horrible, but still...

I never would've thought that I'd end up giving my first to another girl. But it was such an amazing night… She saw the smile reappear on Kanako's face as Suzushima took her hand in his... so I guess it's just as well!