Ouran High School Host Club Fan Fiction ❯ Rubbing The Lamp ❯ Ch 4 Huni's First Wish ( Chapter 6 )

 

 

 

Disclaimer: Ouran Host Club belongs to Bisco Hatori, not me. I make no profit off this story. If Bisco Hatori-san wishes, I will remove this from the web upon her personal request.

 

Secondary Disclaimer: All characters in this story are at least 18 years of age. While that might seem unlikely - as three of the characters are only sophomores in high school, I figure it this way: if Bisco Hatori-san can ignore the students graduating for two years in a row and keep everyone in the same grade, I can then apply that logic to their ages. Therefore, Haruhi, Kaoru and Hikaru are just 18. Kyoya and Tamaki are about to turn 19. Mori is about to turn 20, and Huni already is 20. (Therefore, according to Japanese figuring, Huni is the only adult. :P )

 

 

This chapter was written as a response to the week 46 Makin' Lemonaide challenge theme: deep down, this character is not as good/bad as you thought. prove it.

 

 

 

Chapter 4

 

“Haru-chan! Come in, come in!”

 

The energetic young man greeted her at the door with enthusiasm, as usual. However, she couldn't help but notice that something was a bit different.

 

“Thanks for coming!” He reached out and took her hand, and she smiled at him. “I'm very excited. So do you wanna know what my wish is?” Bouncing up and down in excitement, she couldn't help but smile and shake her head. He was always so cheerful.

 

“Well I have to know in order to grant it,” she replied logically, one finger in the air to emphasize her point.

 

At that, he stopped bouncing and just grinned. That answer was so typical Haruhi.

 

Haruhi, the most kind and beautiful and true woman he'd ever known, was here with him in his house. His hand was holding hers - so soft. Internally, he was warring with himself. She was here. He could just jump into her arms and kiss her.

 

But then again, this was the first wish. If he blew it now, he'd not get to use the last two wishes. He had to keep himself under control. A deep breath in through the mouth to calm himself, let out slowly through the nose like he'd been taught in his martial arts training, and the reminder of what he could do during the three wishes made his smile genuine as he replied, “I want you to teach me how to bake a cake.”

 

“You want to learn how to bake a cake?” She was genuinely surprised by the request. Wasn't he rich? Didn't the rich believe that it was better to just hire someone else to do everything? He hadn't said anything when the twins had been badgering her about how stupid it was to bake a cake from scratch that time. On the other hand he HAD encouraged her in making it, and been appropriately impressed with the result. Still, though… “Why?”

 

It wasn't hard to blush. After all, one of his reasons was almost completely contrary to his goal for the wishes. And the other reason was to help ACHIEVE his goal for the wishes.

 

“It's kind of… Well… There's more than one reason. But… you know, Takashi's birthday is coming up. So I thought I'd like to make him a cake.”

 

She smiled softly at him, and he had to take another deep breath to get himself under control. “Okay. Is there any particular type of cake you had in mind?”

 

“Hooray!” He bounced up and down. “I'm so glad you're going to help me. Takashi likes this one cake very much, but he always ends up giving me his piece because he knows how much *I* like cake. And every time I try to say no - that it's HIS and he should enjoy it, he just smiles and shakes his head. But one time, I came over to his house when he wasn't expecting me and I saw him eating this cake, and I could tell how much he was enjoying it. So I know he likes that cake. But he'll never eat it if I'm around - which is really sad because cake is always better if you can share it with someone. That's why they make them so big - so that there's slices for everyone!”

 

There was no way to hold back the soft chuckle that came to mind when she pictured Takashi eating cake the way Mitsukuni always did. She didn't allow herself to imagine sharing a slice with him, him feeding her a bite from his own fork - the image flashed into her head only for half a second before she smothered it.

 

“So what kind of cake will I be teaching you to make?”

 

His grin split his face from ear to ear as he pulled out a picture. “It's not as sweet as what I usually get. It's really fluffy - almost airy. And it's got layers. The cake part is white and squishy. If you take that part out and eat it by itself, it's kinda plain. Soft and light. But between the layers are strawberries and a creamy frosting that's actually a little tart - not like lemons, but like… like… like how fruit is when you eat it - but creamy. And I know you'd think that if it's creamy it would be sweet, too, but it really isn't. The only part that seems at all sweet is the topping - it's topped with real whipped cream and decorated with fresh strawberries.”

 

She was picturing the cake in her mind. It sounded very gourmet. And delicious. “Hm,” she said contemplatively, “that sounds really good.” Then she smiled at him. “Can I borrow your computer? That way I can find a recipe that's similar and just modify it to work.”

 

He tried to look nonchalant and not nervous. “Okay… It's in my room…” He turned and led the way into his bedroom.

 

He was leading her to his bedroom. His bedroom. It was difficult not to remain calm. Opening the door, he ushered her in and pointed her to this PC.

 

Sitting at his desk, she began surfing the web, while he sat on his bed looking at her. She'd been surprised at his room. For some reason she had expected the room to be frilly, but it wasn't. It was clean and elegant looking - with Usa-chan on his bed as the only bit of cuteness. The literature on his bookshelf was surprising, too. Sartre, Machiavelli, Marx, warred with Beaudalaire, Balzac, Nabakov. She shrugged, who knew? And she continued to search online for the right recipes to pull from.

 

He saw her look around his room and shrug. That's one of the things he loved about her. She took things in stride. She didn't judge people - rather, she accepted each facet of each person in her life without trying to pigeonhole them for easy categorization. In fact, he doubted she categorized anyone other than by their individual name.

 

Watching her sit at his desk was like watching one of his fantasies, but with the excitement meter turned down. This was the room, after all, where he allowed himself to think of her differently than anyone would imagine. This was the room where he allowed himself to imagine what it would be like if he ever got a real chance. Not that he ever truly believed it could happen.

 

He knew Takashi was in love with her. And for that reason, he wouldn't have a chance. Oh, not that he believed that Haruhi was the type of girl who would choose a man based upon looks (and Morinozuka had just the right look to turn heads everywhere they went). No. Haruhi would judge by soul matching. So while there was the theoretical chance that he could win her heart, he knew it would never happen. Because he couldn't take her from him - not Takashi. It just wouldn't be right. It was bad enough that Takashi gave him his beloved strawberry cream cake.

 

His inner voice called, “All's fair in love and war,” but he struggled to not listen. He loved Takashi, and he wouldn't take the steps to betray him - especially if it meant that Haruhi would be happy. And who wouldn't be happy with Mori? The only time he gave in was at night - when he would imagine her alone with him. The fact was, he loved her as much as Takashi did, even if not as deeply. She was truly precious. And beautiful. And giving. And the first woman to treat him as a whole person.

 

And that called to his soul.

 

After all, how many women out there would treat someone who looked like a 12 year old like an adult. She did calm him with treats, but she never did it in a condescending manner. She treated him the same way she did all the other club members - with the exception of Kyoya and Takashi. She really did favor them, even if she didn't seem to realize it.

 

But this agreement meant that all bets were off. He'd get a chance to at least try. And though he was still fairly sure that she would end up with Kyoya or Takashi, he was going to do everything in his power to TRY to make her see him as a MAN. If even he knew it would only be for just one day.

 

“AH! Here we go!” she declared, pulling him from his reverie. The sound of his printer indicated she had found everything she needed to move forward. She retrieved her pages and faced him with a purpose. “Now we're ready to go shopping!”

 

He jumped up from the bed and said, “Okay. What for?”

 

“Ingredients.”

 

Chuckling, he replied, “Oh, we don't need to go shopping. Follow me!”

 

Through the twists and turns of the house, gazing at the subdued elegance that was displayed everywhere, Haruhi followed her sempai. The mansion was beautiful, as were its furnishings, but the overall aesthetic was almost Spartan feng shui. Clean. Almost… bare. Designed so as to draw attention to the few items that WERE present. The feel was something like a museum - you wouldn't want to touch anything for fear of breaking it.

 

It made her appreciate the enthusiasm of her clubmate all the more. She imagined that he was probably not encouraged to be anything but serious in this atmosphere. So the fact that he had decided for himself who he wanted to be, it actually made her kind of proud of him.

 

What was that she'd thought the night before about him not being as deep as Kyoya and Mori? She scolded herself for even thinking that.

 

“Here we are!” He bowed before her as he gestured to the gigantic room in front of him. “These are our kitchens. We usually keep a little of everything on hand just in case Kimiko gets a craving. She's my mom's youngest sister - and she's going to have a baby soon. Mom… kind of spoils her a bit - but you'd never know it if you met her. She's so nice!”

 

He opened up the walk-in refrigerator and said, “Here's where the cooks keep the milk and stuff that needs to be kept cold.” Looking where he pointed, she could see a large basket of fresh strawberries. “I sometimes sneak in here for a snack at night.” Crossing to another big door, he pulled it wide to show a gigantic pantry. “Here's where we keep the stuff that doesn't need to be kept cold. So… Where do we start?”

 

Haruhi couldn't help blinking in amazement. This kitchen was unreal. After blinking a few more times for good measure, eyes wide, she said, “Um. Well. Let's find some bowls and some pans.”

 

…

 

She had to admit it: Huni was a good student. She'd started by explaining how the first thing you do is get out all your ingredients, measuring and preparing them into little bowls so that they'd be at hand when you got to the point that you'd need them.

 

Once she showed him the proper way to measure ingredients, he went around gathering everything they needed and did all the measuring himself, under her supervision. Then when the ingredients were all measured, she instructed him on how to prepare the pans for baking, which he did - only getting a little of the flour on himself in the process.

 

However, once it came to mixing the ingredients, it was a bit more difficult. For some reason, he just couldn't seem to get the hang of how to make the spoon work in the bowl. So she did what has worked for centuries in the training of how to cook - She stood behind him, her arms around him, her hands on his, guiding them through the mixing.

 

“What- What are you d- doing, Haru-chan?” The sound of his voice was even squeakier than he'd ever heard it. Her arms wrapping around him - he'd dreamed of that for so long.

 

“Just relax and let me guide you,” she said calmly.

 

There was no ulterior motive. Her tone was her regular practical sound. Stifling a sigh, he relaxed and decided to just enjoy it while he could. As much as he could. Leaning back into her, he felt the softness of her breasts rubbing up against him and couldn't help but snort in self-derision.

 

She felt him tense and his snort reminded her of what he'd said earlier. It seemed somehow self-deprecating. She couldn't help but probe. “So, what's your other reason?” she asked softly as they continued to stir.

 

“Huh?”

 

“You said there was more than one reason why I'm teaching you to bake a cake - what's the other reason - or reasons? That is, if you feel like sharing.”

 

A long sigh came from the neophyte baker before he responded. “I… Haru-chan, I'm an adult. And even though I've grown almost foot in the past year, it seems that everyone treats me like I'm in elementary school.”

 

Typical Haruhi head-cock ensued as she listened to the boy speak softly and seriously.

 

“Well, everyone except you. You treat me the same way you treat everyone - with respect. But even so…

 

“I know I enjoy things that are sweet and cute, and I try to ignore things that are upsetting - but does that really make me so immature? I may never get to be as tall as everyone else - I've probably maxed out my height with my last growth spurt - but that doesn't mean that I'm not capable of being responsible and serious when I need to be.

 

“I AM an adult. I have adult thoughts. Adult feelings.” His voice was a bit deeper than usual, and he surreptitiously wiggled to feel more of her softness against her back. “And even if I do look young, I want to be taken seriously.

 

“It's not just about the cake - the cake is just the first step. The first step in me taking control of my life. I'll graduate soon, and live in the world, and although I'm not above using my cuteness and short stature to my advantage when necessary, I want those who I CARE about to see me as… more.”

 

They continued stirring in silence. “Oh,” was her only reply.

 

His goal was one that she could totally comprehend and sympathize with. She didn't think he was rubbing up against her on purpose, but for some reason it caused her to have a flashback to her dream. She felt a kind of nervous energy filling her. Part of her was waking up and wanting others to see her…

 

She'd always thought that male and female didn't matter. But now… Now…

 

Huni's heart was beating furiously in his chest. The last wiggle had done something different. He'd felt - he couldn't deny what he'd felt from her. He'd rubbed against her breasts and her nipples had hardened. And then she'd sighed softly, her breath warm against his ear and sending bolts of electricity through him. If he didn't get out of her embrace, he'd end up dropping the bowl, sending its contents to the floor where he would immediately end up on top of her, rolling in the sticky batter and then licking it off…

 

He HAD to stop this line of thinking. Coughing, he pulled out of her arms and forced a grin onto his face. He held the bowl and stirred on his own. “Haru! Like this?”

 

Her wan smile reinforced what he'd just come to believe. He had a chance. But he had to control himself. No using his martial arts to overpower and take her - although he knew he could. No. He had to make this cake, share it with her, and wait. Two more wishes.

 

He'd use them to his advantage.