Disclaimer: Neither Ouran High School Host Club nor its characters are my property, as they were created and are masterfully weaved by Bisco Hatori. I just like to make them blush at each other.
Author's Note: This is most likely a drabble unless I get shouted at enough. And it will take a lot of shouting. Enjoy!
Morinozuka Takashi sighed. His day had been long and his train car of choice was packed. He ignored the jostling of bodies as he thought back to his days with Mitsukuni at the dojo, before his family "helped" him get his cushy office job. Though he did find the time on the weekends to go to the dojo, Mitsukuni was there almost as rarely as he was, so their chances of bumping into each other were very slim.
He glanced at the young couple across the car, cuddling close, sporting their high school uniforms, as the young man shilded the young woman from the bustle of the crowd. They blushed at one another, and Takashi smiled. He remembered the good times in high school and the antics of a certain Host Club.
He thought of Haruhi, and the great times the Host Club had after she joined. Although they had all been close friends, she was the one he missed the most (besides his childhood friend, of course). He hadn't seen her since she had left Tamaki's graduation party in a huff two years before.
The train jostled violently, knocking Takashi out of his thoughts and into the person next to him. There was a loud "Don't TOUCH me!" and the man he had bumped into was shoved back against him.
Takashi knew immediately what had happened. It occurred all the time on the train. His hand clamped down on the chikan's shoulder.
"Hey."
"C-can I help you?" Takashi knew that he was intimidating, and now so did this man. The train jerked to a stop, and Takashi took the train's opening doors as an opportunity to get rid of the pervert held tightly in his grip. Just as the doors began to close, he pushed the man off of the train. Takashi regretted that there was not enough time to mess up the offender properly, but with so many people around, what could you do? At least he had left him with a bruise on his shoulder that would make him think twice before molesting girls on the train again.
"Ah, thank you!" The girl was short and petite, with khaki capris and flowered sandals, shoulder length dark hair and glasses. The kind of girl anyone would go out of their way to protect. She managed to pick up her book and backpack before the train started moving again, but she lurched against Takashi when it jerked to a start.
"You're welcome," he boomed, as he caught her arm to prevent her body from smashing against his inappropriately.
She looked up, her amber eyes full of surprise. "Mori-sempai?"
"Haruhi," his voice portrayed none of his shock. It sounded to Haruhi like he had known she was there the whole time.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, then noticing his loosened tie, said, "going home from work?"
He nodded.
"I just finished with midterms," she told him with a sigh. "I'm a pre-law student at Todai, did you know that?"
He shook his head.
"It's pretty tough, but I'm enjoying it," she smiled at him as the train stopped again to shuffle people on and off. "Do you take this train a lot?"
He nodded.
"I'm on it every day at this time! I wonder why we've never run into each other before?"
He smiled.
The train lurched and Haruhi fell toward him again. He caught her, but the press of people who had entered the car pushed them closer together. Haruhi glared at the person behind her, but Mori put a protective arm around her waist and pulled her closer to his chest.
Her blush was almost louder than her quiet "thank you." Haruhi was silent for the duration of the redness of her face, and Mori smiled at the situation. It made him feel like he was back in high school again, with Haruhi's blush, the smell and the brush of her hair on his chin, someone to protect again...
"This is my stop, sempai," Haruhi said quietly as the train came to a brusque halt. Mori released her and she stepped away from his protective bubble. The doors opened, and she exited the train with a wave and a "hope to see you next week, sempai!"
The doors closed, and Mori's gaze drifted over to the couple still cuddling across the car. The girl caught his eye and winked knowingly. The train jostled and continued on its way down the track.
Additional notes: A "chikan" is basically a pervert, someone who gropes others (doesn't just have to be young girls) in large crowds: i.e., walking down a crowded street, at a restaurant, on a train. Inappropriate touching is a big problem in Japan, but it happens so often that it's hard to catch someone in the act, report, & prosecute them.