One Of Many Feelings | OHSHC

18. If The Shoe Fits

Tsuna's POV

I decide to give a final piece of advice as the car nears the mall, “Don't mention anything related to our plan until it is complete. Not even when you hire the investigator or pay his parents.”

“Wait, so I'm doing everything?” Hikaru asks, annoyed.

“Well, I can't really do anything, can I? Besides... It's safer for the both of us if we don't talk about what we're doing. Someone could overhear.”

“You're so paranoid,” he sighs. “It's fine though. I don't mind.”

“I'm growing on you, huh?” I nudge his arm with my own.

“Yeah,” he laughs. “Like a fungus.”

I look at him, my mouth agape in offense. “What a distasteful comparison.”

We pull up to the mall's front entrance and get out of the car. We go back to the store where the rest of the host club was, only to find they aren't there. Hikaru pulls out his phone and makes a call.

“Sir, where are you?” he says, assumingly to Tamaki. After pausing, he continues, “Okay, we're on our way!”

He hangs up his phone and turns to me, “They went to a shoe store. Let's check the mall's directory and find it.”

I nod and we begin to walk again. Eventually, we meet up with the others. Haruhi and Tamaki are the only ones looking at shoes though. Honey is picking up shoes that people left around and passing them to Mori to put back. And Kyōya appears to not have made an appearance yet.

“Where's Haruka and Kaoru?” I whisper to Hikaru as we walk into the store.

He shrugs, “No clue.”

I approach Tamaki, Hikaru following closely behind. Haruhi perks up when she sees me.

“Finally, you're back,” she sighs. “Tamaki has been making me help pick out shoes for Haruka this whole time.”

I frown, “Actually, I was just about to ask Tamaki about that. Where's Haruka? Why isn't he helping you?”

“Ah,” Tamaki's lips tighten awkwardly. “He's a bit tied up at the moment.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” My frown somehow deepens, “He better not have ditched you! Especially after you've gone out of your way to buy him clothes.”

“Tsuna, it's fine. I'm actually happy,” he puts a hand over his heart. “Poor Haruka has had a hard time settling into this new environment. I'm glad he's made a friend. Even if it's with that shady twin.”

“He's with Kaoru?” Hikaru asks.

“You guys really didn't see them? They're sitting right there.” Haruhi points at a bench directly across from the store.

I look over and sure enough, there they are. I pinch the bridge of my nose in frustration. Perhaps Haruka is not the only one oblivious to their surroundings. I tell Hikaru to wait for me in the store and walk towards the bench. I feel like I could vomit just by looking at them. It's like they're in their own world. Even as I get closer, they don't notice me.

I stop only a foot away from them and clear my throat. Still, they don't notice. I try again to no avail. Sighing, I step closer and grab Kaoru limply by the wrist, taking his arm off of Haruka's shoulders. They both finally look up at me.

“Oh, hey, Tsuna! What's up?” Haruka smiles.

Kaoru doesn't greet me though. He just looks at me through tightened eyes, as if he's judging me.

“Nothing, Haru. I just need to talk to you.” I force a smile back.

“Oh... Uh, sure. Be right there.”

I step away from them and wait for Haruka. He comes to me and stands impatiently, waiting for me to speak.

“I can see you don't want to be here so let me get right to the point,” I say, crossing my arms. “Are you gay?”

His face goes through a flurry of emotion in almost an instant. His eyes widen in shock, his brows furrow in confusion, his jaw clenches in anger. He starts dozens of sentences, all of which get cut off prematurely by his stammering and lack of coherency. The sentence he manages to say is anticlimactic.

“I'm not,” he breathes out.

“You sure act like it though.”

“Wh–what?! How do you even act gay? Whatever. It doesn't matter because I'm not gay.”

“Then what's the deal with you and Kaoru? You seem close.”

“Yeah, we're friends. Ever heard that term before?” his stance widens as if going on the offensive.

“Hmph, of course I have!” I turn my head, “It's just suspicious, is all. I mean, Haruhi and I are friends but you don't see us going on dates or putting our arms on each other.”

“Well, that's because you're a girl and he's a guy. It'd look bad if you two did that stuff.”

“It looks just as bad if two guys do it, Haru.”

“Only you think like that.”

“If that's what you want to believe, fine. I won't stop you. I just wanted to hear it from you since I don't like listening to rumours. I thought I'd give you the benefit of the doubt since we're of the same blood.”

“Huh? What are you talking about? What rumours?” he asks with a sudden air of fastidiousness.

“People have been talking, Haru. They're saying you're gay. I'm not going to lie, I can see where these rumours come from. You spend all your time with a male host club, you go on dates with Kaoru, and you get angry at girls. Now, I was hoping to help dispel the rumours but you've been nothing but defensive this whole time. I have nothing I can use to build you a proper alibi.”

“Alibi?! What, am I on trial? Am I some sort of criminal?”

“You know what I mean. That's beside the point, though. The proper question that needs to be asked is if you want my help.”

He doesn't say anything so I ask again, “Well? Do you?”

He stays silent a few moments longer before finally nodding, “Yes, I do.”

“Well, then the first thing you need to do is stop hanging around Kaoru so much.”

“What?! But he's my friend!”

“Just trust me on this. Avoid being seen with him until you can find yourself a girlfriend.”

“I... I guess I can do that. What's the next thing?”

“Getting a girlfriend actually was the second thing. The third and final thing, though, is to leave the host club.”

“Huh?! I can't do that! I'm in debt, you know that!”

“That's why leaving the host club is the final step. Work hard so that you can do it sooner rather than later.”

“I don't know about this, Tsuna.”

“You're not obligated to follow through on any of this. However, if you're smart, you'll do as I suggested.”

I give him a reassuring smile and walk away. I return to Hikaru and tell him to look at Haruka. We watch as he stands where I left him before walking away. However, he doesn't walk back to Kaoru. He comes into the shoe store and tries on shoes that Haruhi and Tamaki picked out.

“What did you do?” Hikaru asks me quietly.

I can't help but smile, “I simply gave some advice.”

All it took was making up some rumours and it kept Haruka from Kaoru. Of course, that won't last forever. The moment Haruka lands himself a girlfriend, he'll get close to Kaoru again. And that should be the easiest thing to avoid. Whether I make him mad in front of a girl he's talking to or defame him when he isn't listening, I'll make sure no girl dates him.

Hopefully, this will give Hikaru some more time with his brother. It's the least I can do for him in exchange for what he's doing for our plan.