Letter Trouble
Author: Krys Yuy
Pairing: Hitachiin Hikaru/Fujioka Haruhi
Fandom: Ouran Koukou Host Club
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters used.
Notes: Haruhi is a bit OOC in the end. Oh, and this was originally meant for 30kisses, but due to inactivity, I lost my claim. So you all can enjoy this anyways.
Summary: Hikaru finds a letter from an admirer of Haruhi's and – jumping to conclusions – gets jealous.

"So, what are you having for lunch, Haruhi?" The youngest Hitachiin twin leaned over to watch as she copied down the assignments in her notebook.

Haruhi barely paused in her work, now used to having her personal space invaded on a daily basis. "The usual lunch box I prepare at home. Why?"

Kaoru shrugged, grinning. "No reason."

She highly doubted that, figuring both twins had a devious plan up their sleeves. However, she decided that she would deal with it when the time came, and just headed out of the classroom and towards the cafeteria. Kaoru latched onto her the moment she stood up, so she never noticed the envelope that fell out of her binder.

Hikaru, however, did. He picked it up and was about to slide it back in her folder when he noticed the red smudge on the front. Eyebrow raised curiously, he flipped over the envelope and his jaw dropped when he saw the lipstick kiss. 'What the-?' He read the sender's information, eye twitching dangerously as he recognized Arai's name. Arai was Haruhi's old friend from middle school, but something about him just rubbed Hikaru the wrong way.

The letter already seemed to be open and Hikaru, having no qualms about invading a girl's privacy, took it out and started to read.

Dear Fujioka,
Hi! How are you? I hope you're doing well since I saw you last.
Thanks for sending me your letter! It was great to hear from you,
especially after seeing you during summer vacation. It was a lot
of fun hanging out. Your club friends seemed nice and all… ;;
Maybe I can visit you next time? It would be awesome to see
Ouran High School on the inside instead of admiring it from the
outside. XD LOL. Anyways, let's definitely keep in touch, okay?
I'm really looking forward to seeing you again. Till next time!

Sincerely,
Arai

Hikaru resisted the urge to squash the letter in his palm, and instead folded it and put it back in the envelope calmly. What was Haruhi doing, carrying around the letter in her binder anyway? Was she keeping it close because it was so important to her? Is that why she had kissed it with lipstick? Ohmygod, she wanted Arai as her boyfriend. That was it. That was why she was carrying the letter with her. It had already been open and everything, which meant she must have read it a thousand times over.

His eyebrow twitched dangerously as his thoughts grew dark. Ouran students darted out of the way as he practically stomped towards the cafeteria. Kaoru waved him over to their usual table, while whispering something to Haruhi that made her laugh. Hikaru's eyes narrowed as he made his way toward them.

"What took you so long?" his twin asked, sliding a tray of food towards him. Kaoru looked up and immediately grew concerned. "What's wrong, Hikaru?"

He shrugged. "It's nothing."

"Uh-huh." Kaoru eyed him suspiciously. "What's that in your hand?"

"Hmm?" Hikaru looked down to find that he was still holding the letter, except now it was crushed in his palm. "Oh crap." While he had placed the note back safely in the envelope, he had forgotten to put it back in Haruhi's folder. His brother snatched it out of his hand before he could react. "Hey! Kaoru!"

The younger Hitachiin had already smoothed out the crumpled envelope. His eyebrows furrowed as he read the sender's and recipient's names. "This is Ha-"

Hikaru slapped a hand over his twin's mouth before he could say another word. Several muffled expletives escaped from Kaoru's mouth – enough that it distracted Haruhi from her lunch. "Umm... you guys are being really noisy."

"Oh yeah, sor-" Hikaru cried out and let go of his brother, pushing him away. "Kaoru! What the hell-?"

His twin spat into a napkin, grimacing. "When was the last time you washed your hands?"

"You didn't have to bite me so hard!" He looked at the teeth indentation on his right hand with a scowl.

Haruhi sighed and gave up all pretenses of trying to eat her lunch in peace. "All right. What's up with you guys?"

Hikaru met his brother's gaze, speaking without saying words. "Don't you dare say a word."

Kaoru popped several tic-tacs in his mouth to take away the taste of skin even as he shrugged innocently. "About what?"

His twin was not fooled, however, recognizing the wicked gleam in auburn eyes identical to his own. He knew exactly what Kaoru was thinking – because he would be thinking the same thing in his position. Still, he narrowed his eyes in warning.

Kaoru, however, steadily ignored him and turned his attention to his favorite female disguised as a boy. "So Haru-chan, you never told us you were keeping in touch with Arai," he said slyly.

If Haruhi was surprised that he knew about Arai, she didn't show it. Instead, she replied, "Well, he was one of my very good friends from middle school." She looked pointedly at the both of them. "You still haven't answered my question. Why are you at each other's throats this time?"

"Why does there have to be a reason?" the older Hitachiin retorted a bit lamely.

Haruhi stared blankly at him.

Kaoru sighed, shaking his head. 'Let's make things a bit more interesting…' With a theatrical flair, he let the letter drop from his hand.

Hikaru snatched the envelope in mid-air before it could land directly in front of Haruhi. However, before he could hide it behind his back, she grabbed his wrist. He laughed a bit nervously.

"I knew I recognized that handwriting," she commented casually, though her grip had suddenly tightened.

"So Haruhi, tell us all about your love affair," Kaoru commented, swinging an arm around her shoulders affectionately.

"What are you talking about?"

He pointed to the letter still clutched in Hikaru's hand. "That is a letter from Arai, isn't it? Has he sworn his eternal love to you?" he asked, arching one eyebrow suggestively. "Is that why you kissed it with lipstick?"

"Huh? You guys know I don't wear lipstick." She gave him an odd look before reclaiming the letter into her possession. "I haven't even read it yet. Besides, Arai and I are just friends."

"You… haven't read it, yet?" Hikaru asked slowly, absentmindedly rubbing his wrist. "But it's open."

"Wait." Kaoru lifted up his hands. "Then what about the kiss? If it wasn't you…" He blanched. "Don't tell me it was Arai!"

Haruhi rolled her eyes. "This morning I got distracted…"

–

"Haruhi! I forgot to give you your mail yesterday night!" Fujioka Ryouji, already decked out in dress and make-up, waved a letter in front of his daughter's face. "It's from someone named Arai."

"Thanks, Dad." Haruhi paused in eating her breakfast, and took the letter. "He must have gotten mine then." She opened the envelope, but before she could read it, her father seized it from her hands again.

"Oh! Now I remember Arai-kun!" Ryouji smiled and kissed the envelope teasingly. "He was a cutie, Haruhi. Are you dating him?"

"Dad!" She rolled her eyes, taking back the letter and stuffing it in her bag, deciding she would read it at school when she had time to herself. Then she remembered the other Host Club members, and the thought of having any time to herself evaporated into thin air. Wryly, she thought, 'I suppose I could always read it in the bathroom…'

–

Both twins looked at her with dumbfounded looks on their faces. "… oh."

Then Kaoru caught Hikaru's eye and burst out laughing.

The older Hitachiin brother blushed. "Sh-shut up!"

Haruhi didn't notice Hikaru's flustered state or chose to ignore it. Either way, there was a thoughtful look on her face as she peered up at him. "Hikaru, what were you doing with my letter?"

The number of angels painted on the ceiling of the cafeteria suddenly looked very interesting. "Well, you see…"

"He was jealous."

"Kaoru!" Hikaru exclaimed, red tinting his cheeks as he shoved his brother in the shoulder.

The younger Hitachiin merely smirked in return. "What? I'm only telling the truth." He gave Haruhi a shrug. "Arai just gets under his skin. But this guy here–" He jabbed his finger at Hikaru. "He thinks you're going to run off and leave us for him."

The oldest twin spluttered, not believing that his brother was actually selling him out. "W-what! I do not think that! You are so wrong –"

Kaoru smoothly interrupted him, giving his twin a smile that clearly said, 'This is for your own good.' "Well, it's all out in the open now, I'm afraid." He shook his head, sighing dramatically, and placed a hand on his brother's shoulder as if in surrender. "Why don't you ask Haruhi out on a date already?"

Hikaru, whose blush had grown redder and redder with each sentence his twin had muttered, met Haruhi's questioning gaze with a bold one of his own. "About Kaoru's idea…"

Haruhi decided she could be mad later about him invading her privacy, especially with how nervous he looked now. Instead, she smiled her mysterious-and-complicated smile, managing to confuse and delight Hikaru at the same time when she calmly replied, "Well, what took you so long?"