Chapter 4

"No."

"But, Dad, I feel better now!"

"I want you staying here."

"I want to go to school!"

"Not until your arm heals."

"My grades will slip if I'm not there!"

"We can take care of that when you feel better."

"But I feel better now!"

"Well, you're not going."

Haruhi Fujioka stood in her living room, her functioning arm parallel with the ground, and her hand clenched into a fist. Angry tears flooded her eyes and streamed down her face.

"I-I…" she struggled to find words, "I HATE YOU!"

She flew off to her bedroom, and threw herself at her bed. She seized her favorite teddy bear, and chucked it at the wall.

In the living room, Ranka ran his fingers through his hair, and sat next to his late wife's shrine,

"Ah, Kotoko," he sighed, "what do I do? The teenager is supposed to hate her mother, not me. Is there any way I could be both? I don't want her to go to school, because her arm's not healed yet, and I definitely don't want her around the Souh boy for quite some time. I don't know what makes me hate that kid. Is it because he's breaking our daughter's heart? But he's not, well, at least not meaning to. This whole "host club" thing…I just don't like it. Haruhi apparently does, because she has friends, and the boys are really nice, and the one with the glasses calls me to update on Haruhi's grades and antics. I just don't know what to do, help me out, will you?"

…

"Hikaru, don't you think we're grilling Tamaki too much?"

Kaoru sat calmly on the bed, as his angry brother paced back and forth. Hikaru punched the wall,

"He deserves it, for what he did," he growled. Kaoru swung his legs back and forth,

"He deserves pain for making her fall in love with him?"

"What?"

"It's as clear as day, my dear brother. Haruhi loves him." The words pierced Hikaru's heart like a knife. Tears brimmed his eyes, threatening to flow over.

…

Haruhi shuffled out of her bedroom, and reached for her father.

"Daddy," she whimpered, "I'm sorry."

"Me too."

Ranka seated his daughter down on the couch,

"If you love that boy, go for him."

Haruhi nodded, prepared for whatever Tamaki Souh had to throw at her.

Finally! Chapter 4 is up! Haruhi's nasty argument with Ranka broke her enough, but what about Tamaki? Will their love finally bloom?