Hikaru yawned and stretched before opening his eyes on Sunday morning. Just like the previous night, he'd woken up a few times in the pre-dawn hours to check on his twin, before falling back to sleep again, but this morning, thankfully, his phone made no sound. That silence prompted him to look at the clock.

The display read 11 and Hikaru let out a mild curse. Hes'd slept longer than he'd planned to. He brought his hand up and brushed some hair out of his eyes with a groan. As long as there were no more impromptu visits from any of the Host Club today, he reckoned he'd be able to keep his sanity intact.

Pushing the covers off, he dragged himself to the bathroom to brush his teeth, before going downstairs to see about a light snack. Descending the steps clad only in a pair of shorts, Hikaru stepped into the kitchen, went straight up to the fridge and began to rummage through its contents.

"Are you sure you want to walk around the mansion in nothing but that?" a smooth voice purred. "What if someone pays an unexpected visit? I don't think I'm strong enough yet to keep their hands off you."

Hikaru jumped and spun around, a small bottle of milk clutched in one hand, to see his mirror image sitting at a small table with half a piece of jam-covered toast in his hand.

"K-Kaoru! What are you doing up?" he asked in alarm. "You should be in bed, resting."

"I felt better, and I felt hungry, so I thought I'd see if there was any solid food I could eat. I asked Haruhi and she recommended this." He waved the piece of toast. "Its good, would you like some?"

Hikaru pulled out a chair opposite his brother and sat down, the bottle of milk still in his hand. Then he leaned forward and peered at his twin's face, searching it for any signs of something amiss. Kaoru let out a dramatic sigh, knowing what his twin was doing. He reached across the table, took his hand and gently placed it against his cheek.

"What do I have to do to prove that I feel better?" he purred into his palm. "Take a shower with you?"

A sly grin spread across the older twin's face. "That's not a bad idea."

Some milk and toast later, the twins stood together under the warm spray of the shower in the bathroom of their actual room, stripped of every piece of clothing they'd had on.

It was only natural for them, considering that they'd taken baths together since they were babies. It was only natural for Kaoru to wrap his arms around Hikaru and lean against him, since he was still considerably weak, not having eaten much over the past couple of days.

It was only natural for Hikaru to return the gesture, pressing their slick, slender bodies close together, since he was rather protective of his younger twin, especially after he'd gotten sick. It was only natural for their hands to roam over each other's torso and limbs as the soaped each other, remembering through touch how the other felt, since they'd been relatively separated for a while.

So it was only natural when Hikaru raised Kaoru's head from the curve of his neck and shoulder and drew their faces together so that their lips brushed against each other's. The only difference was that Kaoru resisted.

"I'm not fully recovered yet," he murmured, trailing little kisses down his twin's neck in apology. "I could still infect you with whatever I'm having."

"I don't care," Hikaru replied, sighing softly.

"But I do. I don't want you to get sick because I was careless in a moment of passion." He nuzzled back into the curve of Hikaru's neck and shoulder. "Be patient, when I'm better you can kiss me all you want."

"I'll do more than kiss you," Hikaru replied, nuzzling back. "Guess I can't argue with that, but you'd better get well soon. I don't have your patience."

"And we'd best not stay under the water for too long, either," Kaoru said, reaching to turn off the shower.

"You think of everything, don't you?" Hikaru chuckled, pulling a towel off the rail and wrapping it around his brother's waist.

"One of us has to," the younger twin said, doing the same for his older sibling.

The rest of the afternoon was spent curled up together on the plush couch in the living room, watching one of their many dvd movies on the widescreen tv. Kaoru snuggled close to his brother, resting his head on his shoulder, and for his part, Hikaru wrapped an arm around him, running his fingers through the soft, damp, red-brown hair and occasionally bending to place a kiss on his twin's brow, making Kaoru smile and blush in that adorable way Hikaru loved as he played with the fabric of his t-shirt.

Kaoru wondered at that point about the Haninozuka brothers, and if Hani and Chika were also spending time together like this. He knew he could never live in that kind of relationship with Hikaru, and he wondered how Hani managed it sometimes. Was that why the little senior preferred to hang out with the Host Club boys instead, because they all liked him and were, in a way, his own little brothers, too?

Hikaru nosed through his hair. "What are you thinking of?"

"How do you know I'm thinking of anything?"

"You're quiet. You always go quiet when you're thinking."

Kaoru shifted. "Just about what the others are up to today."

"As long as they don't invade us again, they can do what they want, I don't care."

"But you should care. We're not alone in this world anymore. You might find yourself needing their help one day. They're our friends after all."

"All I need, and all I care about, is you," Hikaru replied, kissing the top of his head. "I love you."

Kaoru smiled and kissed the side of his neck in return. "I love you, too." Then he sat up. "I'm rather tired of being stuck indoors. Shall we go outside and take a walk in the garden?"

"Are you up to it?"

"I'm more than up to it. Anything's better than lying around inside the house. Please Hikaru?"

There was no way the older twin could possibly refuse the pleading look on his brother's face, so he relented, standing and gently pulling his younger twin up with him, and wrapping a protective arm around his shoulders before leading him out of the house.

Once outside, each twin walked by himself for a while before Hikaru fell into step with Kaoru and clasped their hands together. Kaoru smiled and squeezed his older twin's fingers lightly, causing Hikaru to smile back and swing their arms in a gentle motion as they walked.

"Hani said we have some beautiful flowers out here," Kaoru commented at random.

Hikaru looked around them. "Yeah, we do. Who planted them, do you think?"

Kaoru glanced at him, a little surprised. "Grandmother of course. She's the one who really started the Hitachin family business when her floral arrangements began to gain global recognition."

"And how do you know all this?"

"Hikaru, really," the younger twin admonished in his usual gentle manner. "Mom told us both the story."

"Guess I wasn't paying attention back then."

"Well pay attention now at least."

"Yes mother."

Kaoru swatted him gently on the arm. "Grandmother's floral business got so successful that people requested she start a school to teach other young people her trade. After Mom was old enough, she began designing a clothing range that was orignally inspired by all the floral arrangements she saw. Its since expanded of course."

"Or we wouldn't be going to Ouran," Hikaru said. "But do you want to take over the business from Mom?"

"I've actually had a few ideas," the younger twin admitted.

"Like what?"

"Like combining Mom's and Grandmother's area of skill. The wedding industry's pretty hot right now. What if the Hitachin label could not only design wedding gowns and accessories, but also the settings and boquets? Flowers are an important part of any perfect wedding after all."

Hikaru stared at his twin in amazement. "Y'know, I never thought of that. It's a pretty good idea."

"I'll need someone to help me manage the business side of things though. I'm not good with all those numbers."

"I guess this means we're business partners as well as brothers then. You leave the business side of things to me." The older twin regarded the younger. "You didn't think you were going to leave me out, did you?"

"The thought never crossed my mind." Kaoru grinned. "Let's tell Mom about our idea when she gets back."

"It should make her happy to hear that we want to continue. I think she's been wondering about us recently, and what we're going to do after we graduate."

"I hope her deal goes through soon and she can come back home." Kaoru sighed. "I miss her."

"I'm sure she's doing everything she can," Hikaru assured. "Now c'mon, lets go in and see what we can do about dinner, shall we?"

Kaoru nodded, and still holding hands, the brothers turned back to the mansion.