D/C: I don't own OHSHC.

Hello! Thank you all for the lovely reviews you sent about the last chapter; they made me quite pleased. I'll include individual thanks at the bottom, if after finishing this chapter I'm still in the mood to write anything else. XD Anyway, it's time to see Haruhi's POV. Enjoy!

Three Syllables

Her

"Haruhi."

"Hikaru."

Three syllables, huh? You're so silly, Hikaru. I always thought you were silly. So what if each of our names had three syllables? I hardly think that's considered important in the greater scheme of things. We're not the first pair to have names with a matching number of syllables, after all. Still, it was amusing to see the childish pleasure in your face every time I said your name or you said mine.

Granted, we did not meet under normal conditions. I mean, I didn't even want to come to the speed dating thing. What a waste of time, I thought. I was in my apartment enjoying a cup of coffee when my friend decided she simply had to intervene with my life. You need to go out and see people, Haruhi, she said. I see people; I see them all the time. What she meant was that I had to get off my bum and go find my "special someone." And so she dragged me out of the apartment against my well, without giving me the chance to even change my clothes, and brought me to that place.

It was everything I expected – boring, dull, pathetic. I wanted to get out of there as soon as possible, but my friend kept glancing furtively at me every one in a while, giving me a look which clearly said, "I'll kill you if you leave your chair." Bah. I couldn't care less about these men who sat in front of me. I could see the general outline of their faces, but I couldn't see their features. There were no eyes, no nose, no lips. They didn't even deserve a hello. I wanted to yell at them, tell them to get out of here, go to the real world where they might be able to find the girl of their dreams. They can't be seriously thinking that they might meet her here?

And then you sat across from me, Hikaru. At first, you didn't even have features either. You were just a blank face like the others, wearing a black sports jacket and a white shirt. You asked me what my name was, and I told you it was Haruhi. You said Hikaru. Yeah, so? I was getting too bored by then and I just plopped my head down against my arms and pretended to snore, hoping it will get my point across. And then…I can't believe you did that, but you bonked me on the head! And it hurt, Hikaru; it really hurt. Meanie.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" we both said at the same time. Okay…

You started to have eyes now, and I could see that they were extremely furious. You have pretty eyes, Hikaru; did anybody ever tell you that?

"I'm ignoring you," I said.

"And I'm bonking you for ignoring me," you replied.

Fair enough. I glared at you, and you glared back unflinchingly. But then the buzzer sounded and you moved to a second table. My head still pounded where you'd hit me, and with every wince I'd search the room for you and glare…hoping that my gaze would burn twin holes into your head. Even though I didn't even like you, I found myself looking at you often…and I know you caught me doing that.

When you cornered me after the speed dating session, I thought you were going to assault me or something, and I was ready to give you a good kneeing in the groin. However, to my surprise, you just wanted to ask me out. I was able to see your mouth then.

"Hey, think I can buy you a drink?" you had asked.

"Drink as in alcoholic drink?" I asked, and you nodded. Tsk, what's with humankind and alcohol? Alcohol is not the proper way to woo someone, you know. You wouldn't want a relationship based on drunken talk, now, would you? "No, thanks. I don't drink."

You weren't about to give up just yet. "Well, then, coffee?"

I thought about the coffee mug I'd left on the table, and then glanced at the coffee stain on my shirt. "I've had enough coffee for one day," I said.

"Pie? Cake?" you said, and there was a hint of desperation in your voice.

I smiled sweetly at you. "I'm not fond of sweets," I replied.

You gritted your teeth, and I tried not to laugh. "Dinner, then? You can't not dine, and you couldn't have possibly had dinner yet, and…let's face it, no-one hates food," you said, the words tumbling quickly out of your mouth. "We could just grab a quick burger or something. Do you like burgers?"

I studied you thoughtfully for a moment, and then gave in when my stomach uttered a faint growl. "Burgers sound okay," I agreed.

You can't imagine my disgust when I found out that your car was the red sports car I'd kicked on my way inside. You stood for everything I hated – you were rich, probably spoiled, and had not a single care in the world. You were what I'd call a rich bastard, but I didn't say that, of course. I just said, "You're a rich boy."

"You say it like it's a bad thing," you said.

"It is a bad thing."

I knew I probably killed any chances of a proper relationship then, but…what the hell? At least I'm getting free dinner. Don't get me wrong, Hikaru; I had nothing against you as a person…but I had everything against you as the class you belonged to.

You took me to a burger joint. I hadn't been in one of those in a long while, and I ordered my fill of those. I could see the horror etched on your face as I munched away on my third or fourth burger; I guess you've never seen a girl with a huge appetite before, eh? The girls you went out with probably ordered miniature dishes and finished half of it.

I think it was the motion. I did not throw up in your car intentionally, Hikaru! I actually felt bad for spraying your leather exterior with the dinner you had paid for, but…what can I do? You took me to a hospital instead of taking me home, and I thought it was rather sweet of you. By then you'd started to have a nose, but I was too weary and tired to take a proper look at your complete face. The doctors at the hospital did a good job with me, giving me fluids and medication, but then they told me I would have to stay the night…and a lump rose to my throat.

I hated hospitals. They terrified me. The smell, the sick people, the screams, the crying…I couldn't deal with it. I guess it's because whenever I was in a hospital, something bad happened. First my mother died, and then my father. It carried bad memories. I had no other choice; I asked you to stay.

You looked completely exasperated. "Why?" you demanded.

"Hospitals scare me," I murmured. You were the first person I'd ever told that to.

I'm eternally grateful to you for staying, Hikaru. You have no idea how much your presence comforted me. I felt bad that you had to deal with my throwing up every so often, and I know I was a hideous sight to look upon…so the experience wasn't exactly rewarding for you. When I woke up next morning, I found you sleeping on the couch. I was able to get my first good look at you, and…okay, okay, I liked what I saw. You were good-looking.

I'm quite good at reading faces…once I find their features, that is…and your face looked laden with emptiness and boredom. Like you had nothing to live for or care about. All rich kids are like that; they have everything and therefore have nothing to work for. It's a sad life, isn't it? It was one of the reasons which made me pity rich people and hate them at the same time.

I didn't stay because…I didn't know what to say to you once you woke up. "Thank you" wouldn't even do you justice. So I put on my clothes and left in a hurry. So shameful, I know, but then…I was never good at dealing with such situations, Hikaru. I'm really sorry; I know you were probably appalled at my behavior. Your disappointed face kept appearing before me even after I'd returned home, scolding me, admonishing me.

I knew I wouldn't be able to get you out of head unless and until I repaid you for what you'd done for me. I showered, slipped into something nice and went back to the hospital. You were already gone, so I asked the hospital staff about you. You had paid for the treatment, so they probably had details of your address and whatnot. They did, and I within moments I was taking a cab to your apartment building. I tried to push resentful thoughts out of my head as I stood in front of your fancy building. Damn rich bastards. Damn rich bastards.

I went up to your apartment and knocked at the door. You opened after several knocks, looking haggard and weary. At the sight of me, your jaw nearly dropped.

"Hello," I said cheerfully. You looked like the cat got your tongue and just nodded. "I've come to invite you to brunch."

"Brunch?" you repeated.

You looked in no state for brunch, though…and I know how annoying it is to be dragged out to a public outing when you're looking like someone trampled you. "We need to freshen you up, though," I told him. "You're in no state to leave the house."

So I went inside. I took the briefest of moments to appreciate how huge the place was before taking your hand and going in search of the bathroom. What was I thinking, you wonder, as I stuck your head under the showerhead and lathered it with shampoo? Well, I was thinking that I couldn't possibly strip you out of all your clothes so cleaning your head would suffice. Your body could just be perfumed instead.

Okay, okay. So my behavior wasn't what you may call orthodox, but…you see, I really don't care about norms. Norms are just unspoken rules society set for us without our consent, and I was never one to go along with something that I hadn't already approved of. So if I wanted to barge in on a guy I barely knew and give him a shower, then I'll do it. And…there was the tiny little truth about me not knowing how to act around guys because I've never been with one. Besides, you looked too stunned to move.

So, while you probably thought it was so strange that I was cleaning you up, I thought it was fairly normal. And then I started to help you into your clothes and you warded me off.

"I think I can get myself dressed," you said.

I tried not to roll my eyes. "Of course you can," I said. You can't imagine my glee when you came out a few minutes later with a humiliated look on your face as you failed miserably to button up your shirt. So I buttoned your shirt, pulled up your jeans and zipped them up…all the time feeling a strange heat radiating through the fabric. I thought you were probably hot, and I tried to locate the air conditioning switch but couldn't find it anywhere. Now I know you were just horny. That's so typical of you, Hikaru.

I know you. I know there were so many times you wanted to pick me, tear the clothes off of my body and make love to me for days…but that wasn't the way I rolled, darling. I strongly believed that sex was something sacred, and that it should be only be between two married people. I know it bugged you. But I'm not about to bend my rules for you, and you know how stubborn I can be.

"Haruhi, what on Earth…?" you demanded after I put your shoes on.

I blinked, confused. "What's wrong?"

"What are you doing?" you said.

Gee, I thought it was obvious. "I'm just getting you ready for brunch," I answered.

You took in a deep breath. "Haruhi, we've known each other for less than…twelve hours and you've already given me a shower and…" you said.

"To be fair, I only washed your hair," I corrected you.

There was a vein throbbing in your temple. "You still saw me half-naked, dammit!" you exploded. "You stripped me right to my boxers and dressed me again! Doesn't that strike you as strange? Do you do that to people all the time? Do you barge in on them and give them showers and dress them up? And how did you find out my address, for God's sake?"

I smiled. "I asked around," I said truthfully. Then I titled my head. "Is it so wrong?"

"It's not normal!"

I saw that coming. I chuckled. "Just because it's not normal doesn't mean it's wrong, baka," I teased. "You only think it's strange because no-one's ever done that to you before. Our mind always classifies unusual situations as strange."

"And rightly so," you snapped.

"You're being silly," I chided you, and…I kissed you.

I don't know why I kissed you. It was quite unlike me to kiss someone I barely knew. But it felt so right. I enjoyed it, albeit it being a brief kiss. I wanted to lean in and kiss you again, but you were already looking so shell-shocked and I thought another kiss might kill you. I didn't bring up the events of last night because I knew you'd figure out that this, the brunch, was my way of repaying you for what you did for me.

I also wanted to wipe that empty look from your face. That's why I always tried to make life unusual for you. You've already showed me how attached you are to norms, and I wanted to show you how much fun you could have if you ignored those norms and lived life the way you wanted. Okay, I'll be honest: the bright colors I painted the apartment with hurt my eyes and the water bed was way too uncomfortable, but…it made the emptiness fade away from your face day by day, and I was willing to sacrifice everything for that.

You made me happy, and it wasn't just the way you were always looking so shell-shocked or the way you kissed me – not that that didn't make me happy, because it did; you're a good kisser, Hikaru. It was the way you were willing to accept everything about me, the way you put me before anything or anyone else, the way you memorized all my quirks and acted according to them, the way you made it so comfortable for me to be around you.

It was inevitable that I would finally say it. I knew it before I said it, but I was just stalling for time.

"I love you," I said suddenly one night.

I realized something when I said it; three syllables. That sentence had three syllables, just like our names. I dared take a look at your face, and you looked shell-shocked as usual. But then you enveloped me in your arms and said your own three syllables.

"I love you."

To this day I wonder if you'd only stressed on the "you" to avoid adding the forth syllable that comes with "too". You're so silly, Hikaru.

-

A/N: All done! You know, I finished this in a relatively shorter time than what took me to finish the first chapter. I guess the fact that the dialogue was already there helped. Hehe. Oh, well, this was fun while it lasted. I'll try to come up with similar stories every once in a while. But now, I would like to thank the following members:

Dera Sin: XD The story doesn't exactly have a point or anything; it's merely describing a relationship between Hikaru and Haruhi. I called it Three Syllables because it begins and ends with three syllables. I'm glad you liked it, though. Thanks for the review!

.: Thank you! A mistake? Really? Where? Would you point it out to me please? And how did you like Haruhi's POV, then?

AnimeCookie: I hope you enjoyed Haruhi's POV! Thank you for the review!

Kats02980416: Thank you so much for the lovely review! I really love the relationship between Haruhi and Hikaru, and I seriously hope they do end up together in the manga. I feel that Hikaru needs Haruhi more than Tamaki needs her; it's Hikaru's eyes that need opening, and his world that needs saving, and not Tamaki's.

Hitsugaya07: Hey, Hitsu-chan, thank you for the review! It's all thanks to you that I've started writing such stories, and I'll be sure to write more things like this! If I'm lousy when it comes to updating, it's because I'm swamped with all sorts of different tasks and projects. (mumbles)

And thanks to anyone who reviews after this!

- S. N. B.