桜蘭高校ホスト部（クラブ）: 抱擁の虫

The grounds of Ouran Private Academy, school for the rich and prestigious, were unusually quiet on this chilly mid-October afternoon. The tranquility of the fall weather was soon interrupted, however, by the barely audible (and slightly uneven) tapping sound of your footsteps. Although it was made obvious by the white and navy sailor fuku you wore that you did not go to the school, you clearly knew exactly where it was that you were going. As you approached the doors to the entrance of the high school section, you looked down to check your beat-up watch, pulling one of the double doors open with your free hand at the same time. ‘Hm, I’ve still got an hour before they close,’ you thought grumpily as you began your ascent of the main stairway, your long navy skirt swishing with each uneven step you took. Upon reaching the second floor, you stopped, pausing to wipe the trails of tears your eyes had involuntarily leaked, before turning right and continuing on your trek.

As you drew closer to your destination, you caught sight of the groups of girls clad in the yellow dress that passed for Ouran's uniform. While some could be seen glaring at you, others squeaked a little as you passed, but stared wide-eyed at your form. You glared right back at them. This wasn't an unusual exchange. Many of the girls visiting the host club were very unhappy with the fact that "their" Haruhi-kun (and, as a consequence, the rest of the Host Club) actually socialized with a "yanki" (not that you were actually a yanki, you just happened to get into a lot of fights…and were almost recruited by several different female gangs). None of them would ever confront you about it, of course, for fear of you attacking them. "Che, I wouldn't waste my time on you prissy airheads anyway," you muttered darkly as you came to a stop outside the doors of the third music room. "If it weren't for Haruhi, I wouldn't ever have to come to this pla—" The doors then came swinging open, revealing a large group of giggling, blushing girls preparing to depart from the clubroom. Sighing heavily, you pushed your way through the flock, attempting to reach your short brunette friend.

Finally, you were able to catch sight of your target, only few feet from where you stood. "Ne, Haruhi," you drawled, squatting on the floor beside the girl's chair, turning your face to hide your involuntary finch as the fabic of your skirt brushed against the source of your limp. "If you're gonna be closing early, let's go do something."

The girl looked over at you, catching sight of something on your face. "You got into another fight?" At your nod, she continued on, "Did you at least disinfect that cut on your cheek?"

"Nah, I was trying to stop the bleeding from the one on my leg." At this statement, you stood, lifting the front of your ankle-length skirt to your knees, revealing a long, bloody gash on the side of your left calf. You winced slightly when the cool air circulating around the room hit it, which elicted a frown from Haruhi.

Almost as if they could sense the wound, two certain redheaded twins were immediately at the scene. "What the hell happened?"

"This guy jumped me on my way here. He had a pocket knife, but he didn't have a proper grip on it, so I managed to knock it out of his hand after he got my leg," you sounded calm, as if you were discussing the weather instead of an attempt on your life/innocence, but you knew the seriousness of this would strike you later. Mushroom cloud sighs left the mouths of the two freshmen, and Haruhi made her way to the supply closet for a roll of bandages (which were now always kept in stock because of the increasing frequency and number of your injuries).

Suddenly, arms attached themselves around your waist as you were glomped from the side. "Ne, ne, did ____-chan get hurt? Will holding Usa-chan make you feel better?"

"I'm fine, Hunni-senpai. It's just a flesh wound. I--"

"Oh no! My other precious daughter has been wounded again! Hurry, Mother, call an ambulance!" It seemed that the entire spectacle of a club had now come to gather around you and your injured person. Once Haruhi had returned with the bandages, you pried them out of her fingers. “I‘ll go do it myself. I think Tamaki-senpai might faint if he saw the blood.” Speaking of which, as you made your way to the nearest bathroom, the sticky red substance began trickling down your leg and into your stock, staining it a brownish-crimson. “That‘s definitely not just a scratch,” Kaoru observed, earning nods from everyone, including a slightly green Tamaki. Upon your arrival back into the third music room, leg freshly washed and bandaged, you were greeted by the sight of Tamaki, babbling about some “wonderful commoner‘s game” that he researched the previous night. “Ah, ______-chan! Since you are a commoner, I suppose you also know of this delightfully wonderful game?” “Uh, what‘s it called?” “Snuggle Bug!” “Oh, no. No, no, no. I am not playing that game. I do not ‘snuggle’, nor do I ‘cuddle‘ or any other synonym for the wretched act.” As you turned to leave, Kyoya’s voice called out to you, sending chills up your spine. “______-chan, if you play, I‘ll lower Haruhi‘s debt by a fifth.” You froze, knowing how much this would help your best friend. Sighing heavily, you turned back around, directing a fierce scowl at the Shadow King as you reluctantly agreed to the terms. As you drew your slip of paper from the top hat being passed around moments later, you realized that you probably should have gotten that agreement in print.
As you unfolded your starch white slip of paper, you were thinking: