Disclaimer: Ouran High School Host Club belongs to Bisco Hatori

Notes: I’d been planning this for almost a year, and I’ve finally finished it only recently. I hope you enjoy it ;D

xxx

He’d been planning it for a while, really, this little scheme of his to seduce and entice. He was devious and sly, and he wanted to play his little game as soon as possible.

When Kaoru grabbed Arai’s hand and dragged the confused boy towards town – smiling at that unworthy commoner, of all things! – Hikaru immediately shoved the watermelon he had been holding into Mori’s arms and rushed up towards Kaoru to hook arms with his twin. He announced that he, too, would join, providing no other reason than the understood fact that he was Kaoru’s twin and thus was automatically allowed. Kaoru only smiled some strange, secret smile while Arai beamed at the thought that Hikaru finally liked him.

“Have fun, guys,” said Haruhi with an infinitesimal smirk (oh, how she knew). “Could you guys bring back some – Oh, never mind!” she called out before darting towards a customer who required assistance while fighting off an overly-eager Tamaki.

“Bye, everyone!” the three boys said in unison, Hikaru shooting an unnoticed glare (Kyouya’s eyeglasses shimmered thoughtfully in the light) at Arai.

The boys waved goodbye and left quickly – Kaoru wanted to explore the town and Hikaru wanted to be with Kaoru and Arai simply wanted to have fun - and were on their way towards some general, unspecified direction. Kaoru hoped that Arai would take him around the town, and Hikaru hoped that he’d remember enough of the sights from earlier to show Kaoru around himself.

“So, where are we headed first?” Hikaru asked, hands shoved in his pocket in a childishly impatient manner.

“Oh, I wanted Arai to give me a proper tour of the town,” Kaoru replied – still smiling and breaking Hikaru’s spirit - as if it were normal to gallivant across the town with a boy who was not Hikaru. “I also wanted to take him to our summer home.”

Hikaru raised an eyebrow. Oh, hoe desperately he wished to remain cool and nonchalant and not like the jealous bastard he really was. “Why there?”

“Because we were going to go swimming.”

“With him?”

Arai, who had been quietly trotting by Kaoru’s side so as not to seem rude, ducked his head in embarrassment. “I’ll go if I’m intruding-”

“No intrusion at all,” the kinder twin smiled gently, edging closer to Arai as if to console. They were so close that their arms brushed. He returned his attention to his brother, his smile replaced with an annoyed frown. “Well, you looked busy with . . . I didn’t want to bother you.”

“I’m never too busy for you,” Hikaru muttered and kicked a rock in order to avoid the unusually sharp gaze directed at him. Through his mind, he envisioned his twin and Arai playfully splashing each other in the pool, imagined Arai accidentally brushing naked skin that he would not permit anybody to touch, thought of the secrets and laughs the two would share without him.

His left eye twitched in irritation.

“Well, we don’t have much time left here in Karuizawa anyway,” Kaoru continued as he eyed the other, suspecting but not truly knowing exactly why the other was bothered, “so I wanted to spend as much time with Arai as possible.”

“Eh?”

“You had your date, now I want one,” came the response in a sugar-coated, spoiled-brat voice.

The elder brother’s eyebrows scrunched in absolute, complete confusion. Hikaru Hitachiin, for once in his short lifetime, had no damn clue as to what Kaoru Hitachiin was talking about. And as a result, shock coiled around his thoughts and squeezed out the images of Kaoru and Arai feeding each other sweets. “Date? What date?”

Arai, too, looked from the long dirt road towards town to Kaoru in surprise, eyes wide as he waited for the twin unusually close to him explain. He did not remember being asked on any such date with Kaoru.

“The one you had with Haruhi.” The younger redhead sounded matter-of-fact.

The expression on Hikaru’s face twisted into something closely related to revulsion and indignant. “That was a date?!”

The small brunet interrupted the twins’ conversation with a sudden realization (and momentarily forgot that he had been dragged into a ‘date’ with a guy). His fist smacked into his palm as the events from the previous day came into mind. “So you guys were on a date! How’d you manage to do that? Nobody could ever get a date with Haruhi in middle school!”

“I was only filling in for Kaoru’s date. I’m not the one who asked her!” Hikaru exclaimed as if desperate to explain himself – as if justifying his audacity to go on a ‘date’ without Kaoru.

Deciding to drop the conversation by not responding to his twin’s statement, Kaoru pointed excitedly towards the bustling town before him, reverting his complete attention to the commoner beside him. “Arai, look! We’re here!” The redhead grabbed a slender wrist and tugged the flustered boy in the direction of a snack stand.

And while Kaoru flapped enthusiastically about whatever the vendor was selling as Arai smiled sheepishly, Hikaru fumed silently, watching the scene unfold before him.

Though he did not enjoy it, Hikaru turned on his heel and made his way back to Misuzu’s pension. He understood that, at that moment, Kaoru did not need his presence.

xxx

A loud shout disturbed the silence as Kaoru and Arai, both clad in swimming suits, dashed towards the in-ground pool and dove into the cool water. They surfaced, choking and laughing and splashing each other.

Simultaneously, the two boys swam to the edge of the pool and pulled themselves out to towel off. A nearby waiter offered them various sweets – cookies and candies and other such delights that Kaoru loved to indulge in. Taking handfuls of these treats, they sat at a nearby table with a large umbrella providing shade from the summer heat. Here, they relaxed, nibbling on their cookies.

“Arai,” Kaoru broke the peaceful silence, smiling towards the brunet, “thank you for showing me around town. I’ve never seen such tiny shops before. When Hikaru and I vacation here, we normally stay in the mansion.”

Arai blushed and returned the gentle, friendly smile. “Don’t worry about it! I wonder why Hikaru didn’t come, though.” At this thought, his expression fell to disappointment. “I guess he really doesn’t like me after all.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, he probably just knew that I wanted to spend the day alone with you.” Flirtatiously – almost deviously – Kaoru leaned over the table towards Arai, smirking at the shy red on the other boy’s face. Oh, this was much too fun. He almost wished Hikaru were here to pick on this cute, easily-flustered commoner. “You’re so likable that I can’t imagine anyone hating you.”

“Th-thanks!” Arai placed a hand behind his head in modesty.

At that, Kaoru suddenly stood from his chair. “Last one in the pool has to kiss the ice cream man!” He dashed madly towards the pool, laughing good-naturedly when he heard Arai sputter and attempt to catch up.

The atmosphere around the Hitachiin mansion continued to echo the sounds of splashing and yells and excitement until the sun’s vibrant rays of orange and red seeped across the sky. Like a mother, the warm colors in the sky seemed to coerce the two teenage boys out of the pool, both collapsing in chairs.

After using each other to do various flips and tricks in the pool (despite the fact that the pool came fully equipped with a diving board), Kaoru and Arai could barely speak due to exhaustion. Their shallow breaths seemed almost intimate, but, of course, neither noticed.

“Well,” Arai said happily, standing up and stretching languidly, “I better be heading back, now. I got off lucky with no deliveries today, but I probably have some to do early tomorrow morning. And I’m sure Hikaru misses you.”

Kaoru nodded and stood as well. Suddenly, his eyes widened excitedly as he took Arai’s hands in his own. “Arai!” he shouted, grinning wildly.

Alarmed, the brunet stuttered, “Wh-what?”

“Can you take me back on your bike?!”

Terribly confused, Arai could only nod. Though he could not quite comprehend why Kaoru would want to ride his dinky, here-son-I-rode-this-back-in-my-day delivery bicycle when he had a shiny, impressive car collection within the garage of his mansion, he simply went along with the redhead’s request. Perhaps this was what rich people did all day during their free time – imitate the lives of average people like him.

Kaoru punched a fist into the air with a ‘whoop!’ before sprinting in the house (and being careful of the puddles so as not to slip and crack his head open like that one summer with Hikaru) to change. Arai followed at a much slower pace, asking nearby butlers and maids where he might find the young master’s bedroom.

Once dressed, the two boys began their excursion back towards town and to Arai’s family’s produce shop. They talked about this and that, girls and boys, school and family – as animatedly and enthusiastically as friends who have known each other since the diaper days. Occasionally, Kaoru would engage in a little game (who could throw the furthest rock? who could get to that gangly-looking tree the quickest? who knew Haruhi the best?) which would normally result in the two bent over double and laughing and crying and leaning on each other for support.

“Well, here we are,” the brunet announced, moving towards his parked bike. He looked back at Kaoru who gazed at the metal contraption with wonder. “What, never seen a bike before? Didn’t you have one when you were a kid?”

Surprisingly, Kaoru shook his head. “No. Hikaru and I weren’t really into that kind of stuff.” He shrugged at Arai’s affronted look, as if Kaoru had offended the other’s beliefs that all little boys owned bikes and wrestled in the mud and ran away from cootie-infested girls. “We normally stayed inside and played tricks on the servants. Or played video games. We went to a lot of our mother’s parties, too.”

Arai wheeled the bike closer to Kaoru. He laughed when Kaoru touched the bike seat tentatively. Lifting a leg over the seat, he motioned at the long bars that protruded from the wheels. “Hold on tightly to my shoulders and put one foot on that bar there. When I say ‘go,’ put your other foot on the other bar.”

Kaoru, stunned at this new situation, did as he was told. However, as soon as Arai shouted the word and they took off towards the pension, Kaoru clung to Arai’s neck instead. For the first thirty seconds, his eyes were shut tight. He almost expected to be flung off. But when he peered at his surroundings, he discovered that he was not, in fact, lying flat on the ground. He was still on the bike, face pressed against a particularly red, hot neck.

Pleased with himself, Kaoru finally unraveled his arms from Arai’s neck to grip the boy’s shoulders instead. He looked left then right then left again. He grinned. “Wow! This is amazing!”

“W-we’re almost there!” Arai shouted, attempting to concentrate solely on getting him and his companion to the pension without crashing. Slowly coming to a stop, he prompted Kaoru to jump off before braking and properly mounting the kickstand.

Kaoru was on a high. Immediately pulling Arai into a hug, he whispered, “Thank you for hanging out with me today. You’ve done more for me than you could ever imagine.”

“Huh?” Arai pulled away first, tilting his head. “I didn’t really do much. I should be thanking you for buying me lunch and inviting me into your home.”

Kaoru smiled – Arai was taken aback when the surrounding rays of sunshine seemed to dim in comparison. “Arai. I’m glad I met you. And . . . I’m sorry for what I did to you.”

With that, Kaoru turned on his heel and dashed towards the pension doors, leaving behind a thoroughly confused yet somehow flattered and almost betrayed commoner boy who had a bike he had to ride home alone.

xxx

Upon entering the building, Kaoru was not surprised to see the tables dotted with guests who had come in for a cup of tea and a slice of cake and not Hikaru. He waved at Haruhi – his chest clenched momentarily – and made his way to his and Hikaru’s appointed room. As his shoes dully hit the wooden stairs, eyeglasses glimmered in a distant corner.

The door was locked; Kaoru blinked. He knocked on the door. “Hikaru? Hikaru, are you in there?”

There was a muffled sound of affirmation and the fumbling of a person trying to get to the door. When at last he was allowed entrance, he was met with the sight of a very unhappy twin brother.

“Did you have fun?” Hikaru asked venomously. If that wasn’t enough, Kaoru could see the other’s fist balled tightly as if holding back a terrible mistake.

“Yes, I did,” Kaoru replied matter-of-factly (mentally – and he had a feeling that Hikaru could sense it, too – he rejoiced in some secret victory of his own). “He let me ride with him on his bike.”

Without a response, Hikaru turned sharply and collapsed on the bed. After a long silence composed of Hikaru sprawled across the bed and Kaoru standing at the doorway watching, the older twin finally sat upright and smiled brightly (forcefully) at his younger brother.

“I missed you all day, Kaoru,” he said in an attempt to be sweet, “How about we go swimming tomorrow by ourselves?”

Nodding, Kaoru sat next to Hikaru, lacing their hands together and leaning against the other’s body.

“Let’s eat some of that blue popsicle stuff, too. The salty-sweet kind.”

Simultaneously, both twins felt the overwhelming urge to jump on the bed like the children they were and dance. They leaned against each other, basking in their completeness with smiles on their faces.

A knock on the door tore them apart as Haruhi Frujioka, carrying a tray of two glasses of water and two pieces of bakery-style, Misuzu-made-fresh bread.

“Hello,” she said with a gentle look in her eyes, setting the tray on a nearby table. She eyed Kaoru with a knowing look. “How was your day with Arai?” At that, Hikaru’s eyes narrowed.

“It was good,” the younger twin responded, returning to his position on his brother’s shoulder (a light glimmered in Haruhi’s eyes). “Hikaru and I are planning to spend tomorrow at our summer home, so you only have to put up with us for one more day.”

“Oh, joy,” Haruhi rolled her eyes. “Well, you guys have fun, then. Enjoy the bread.”

As Haruhi was leaving, Kaoru requested that she ask Misuzu to make her amazing, magnificent, life-altering cookies. He didn’t quite notice eyes identical to his own staring at him with such ferocity.

xxx

They changed in front of each other as usual, teasingly sneaking peeks and making comments that designators would murder to witness. They leapt into the pool and performed tricks off the diving board and off each other, laughing like sunshine.

Hikaru tread water as Kaoru lifted himself out of the pool. He watched in fascination as droplets of water glimmered in the radiant sunshine off his twin’s slim, fit body. The way that identical red hair was plastered on an identical neck was, to him, somehow erotic

And it pissed him off – created a burning fire in his body that had nothing to do with sexual arousal – that Arai, some stupid boy that they’d only met the other day, was also blessed with this sacred sight. Hikaru felt almost cheated, as if his special prize was, in fact, not his own. It seemed to dirty Kaoru, and that was one thing Hikaru would not forgive.

Kaoru’s voice broke his train of thought, and he, too, hoisted himself out to grab a cookie (they made sure to save some of Misuzu’s baked goods). The two sat in chairs on either side of the round table, their hands grabbing mindlessly at yet another cookie.

“Hey, let’s go back inside to change,” Kaoru suggested, standing up and already heading towards the house. Hikaru quickly followed, grabbing Kaoru’s hand and leading the way towards their bedroom.

And there, laying on the floor, was a baseball cap of sorts – clearly not either of the twins’.

“This must be Arai’s,” Kaoru said as he picked up the item and inspected it. “He probably left it here when we were changing.”

That same feeling of burning erupted once again within Hikaru’s stomach, lighting his nerves and rage. “You changed together?”

Kaoru shrugged. “Well, of course. We’re both guys.”

And in his head, Hikaru saw Kaoru and Arai, naked in Hikaru and Kaoru’s bedroom, staring longingly into each other’s eyes. He saw Arai’s rough, commoner hand brushing over Kaoru’s delicate, aristocratic skin. He could hear Kaoru’s sweet voice making the softest and most intimate of noises. Eyes that only Hikaru should see. Skin that only Hikaru should touch. A noise that only Hikaru should witness.

This was unacceptable.

Kaoru’s eyes widened as his twin brother nearly tackled him onto the ground, arms pinned down by strong hands. It was almost frightening, really, to see Hikaru look at him with the fire of possessiveness, of an incomprehensible jealousy.

“Kaoru,” Hikaru hissed, eyes staring directly at their identical counterparts, reflecting barely tamed fury rather than shock. His hands clenched tighter, and his voice could barely imitate the emotions he felt. “I don’t understand some things, like the way I feel around Haruhi and Tamaki. But Kaoru, I’m going to tell you right now, when it comes to you, I know everything. And I know – god damn it, I know - you’re the only thing I need in this shitty world, and we belong to each other. Only each other.”

Before Kaoru could say anything, Hikaru pressed their lips together in a show of magnificent necessity and absolute compassion. Hikaru’s equally soft hands loosened their grip and caressed his brother’s body. His ears delighted in the faint noises that were trapped in the back of his brother’s throat.

When he pulled away, Hikaru only stared into Kaoru’s eyes.

Kaoru nodded and understood.

xxx

It was nearly four in the morning when he woke up at random, startled awake by a strange dream of which he could remember no certain details. He sighed, his tired eyelids closing in an attempt to fall back asleep. Almost immediately after, his eyelids snapped open to observe the quietly sleeping form of his brother on the bed adjacent to his own. Unlike his own form, which was sprawled so carelessly across his bed, Kaoru was curled on his side, looking so entirely soft and serene.

Hikaru, not quite able to help himself, scooted across the distance between him and his twin and spooned the other. Fondly, he placed an adoring kiss on Kaoru’s head. His eyes closed once more, the pleasant smell of his favorite brand of shampoo lulled him into a lethargic sleep as Kaoru continued to sleep without notice.

xxx

For whatever reason, Kaoru awoke to the blinding brightness of yellow, yellow sunshine whilst basking in its illumination on the soft carpet of his bedroom floor. It was a peculiar situation, and Kaoru could not quite explain how he had come to end up here rather than underneath his warm covers on his springy mattress.

Peering over the edge of his bed, the younger twin twitched almost violently at the sight of Hikaru spread-eagle on his bed. Without a moment’s hesitation, he leapt onto his brother, tickling his twin’s sensitive areas (only he knew such things).

“Ah! Kaoru!” Hikaru exclaimed, trying desperately to escape his punishment. His hips bucked upwards in vain as Kaoru latched on to his body even tighter, continuing his brutal attack. “What are you doing?!”

“Paying you back for pushing me out of my bed!” Kaoru replied, stopping purely out of mercy for his poor, poor brother. Instead, he laid down on top of Hikaru, almost purring at the warmth for Hikaru liked to sleep naked quite often.

As best as his normal body flexibility would allow, Hikaru peered over his shoulder at Kaoru in question. “But I was cuddling you.”

Kaoru smiled, wrapping his arms around Hikaru’s neck. He yelped in complete surprise when Hikaru lifted them both and rolled over, squishing him underneath his twin’s body. With a grunt, he rolled his hips upwards in agitation.

“Get off,” he whined. “You’re heavy!”

“Oh, please, we weigh exactly the same!” Regardless, Hikaru rolled off to the side before sitting up and looking down thoughtfully at Kaoru.

Kaoru tilted his head. “What?”

“This might sound a little weird, but,” Hikaru leaned over Kaoru until their noses were only a couple of inches apart, “you look really sexy right now.”

xxx

Within the hour, they were once again back at the pension, flirting and grinning and teasing like the Hitachiins they were.

To Kaoru’s delight and Hikaru’s dismay, Arai met them at the entrance, a box of produce in his arms. He smiled good-naturedly, turning around when Haruhi opened the door and graciously received the delivery. She gave a smile that sent a flutter through all of their stomachs and ventured back inside while shouting something at Misuzu.

Hikaru unconsciously clung to Kaoru’s hand.

“Hey, Kaoru, Hikaru,” he greeted brightly, a slight blush on his cheeks from his brief encounter with Haruhi. A nervous laugh followed.

“Good morning, Arai,” said Kaoru in a casual attempt to break the tension. “Have a lot of deliveries to make today?”

The brunet nodded. “This was the first of the day. I’ve got a lot more to go through.”

“Well, then, this is where we say goodbye, then.” Kaoru held out his hand, a certain shine in his eyes that made Arai blush. “Hikaru and I are probably going to leave sometime today.”

Returning the smile, Arai shook Kaoru’s hand. “It was nice meeting you, Kaoru. If you’re ever around, come find me.” He then turned to Hikaru, his countenance falling trap to intimidation. “It was nice meeting you, too, Hikaru.”

The elder twin, though he did not extend a friendly hand, offered an hey-you’re-a-pretty-okay-guy-I-guess smirk. “It was nice to meet you too. Take care of Haruhi while we’re gone, all right?”

With a farewell wave, the commoner hopped over his bike and made his way back to his delivery shop. He was out of sight for perhaps two seconds when Hikaru swiftly grabbed Kaoru and kissed him.

“We’re jealous people,” Hikaru muttered as he rested his forehead against his twin’s, “but I just happen to be one level higher.”

Kaoru laughed, placing a quick kiss on Hikaru’s cheek. “Come on, let’s go home and take a bath together.”

xxx

Hikaru slammed Kaoru against the school hallway wall (as gently as he could), and several whispers and squeals of delight erupted from the student body around them.

“I don’t like it when other people look at you,” Hikaru said huskily for show.

“Oh, Hikaru!” Kaoru exclaimed for show as well. “You know my eyes are only on you.”

Haruhi rolled her eyes and purposefully bumped into Hikaru, causing the elder twin to stumble forward and collide with the younger twin. Fortunately, Hikaru’s lips (and teeth, in all honesty) landed on Kaoru’s forehead, though their bodies were a tangled mess against the wall that stood so steadfast as if to force them together.

As Haruhi walked away, pushing past excited girls and awe-struck guys, a smug smirk graced her face for a brief second.

xxx