My First... Friend (Fujioka Haruhi)

You heaved a heavy sigh as you walked down the hallways of Ouran high school, books clutched tightly to your chest. Several girls passed by you, their eyes narrowed with disgust and hatred. They couldn’t believe that a commoner like you was allowed into their prestigious school.

It had been almost two months since you were enrolled at Ouran, but the looks and the treatment you received had not changed. You understood why you were being treated so, but you were in no position to complain. Your new parents only wanted what was best for you and since they had an unbelievable amount of money, they thought what was ‘best’ was sending you to Ouran.

So far, though, you failed to see what your adopted parents deemed so impressive about this school. So what if it was built like a castle and had all of the latest teaching equipment? It was filled to the very brim with stuck-up teens who believed they were better simply because their parents had money.

You still weren’t sure how they had managed to figure out that you were an orphan. It made you question the limits of what one could do with unlimited amounts of cash, but you hated to think that way and did your best to remain positive.

Then there was the uniform, a frilly bright yellow dress.

It took everything you had to not become sick whenever you looked at it. Not only that, but it was very difficult for you to move around in the thing.

As if sensing your distaste for the fabric, the dress slid down, falling into the path of your foot. Your sneaker landed on it causing you to trip and fall face-first to the ground, books scattering across the floor. The passing students paused, but not to give you a hand.

They laughed at you, pointing and shouting insults at you.

Your cheeks burned and you sniffled in an attempt to stop the tears before they could fall from your eyes.

You hated this school.

You hated rich people.

You hated this new life.

Why did you survive the car accident just to suffer like this?

“What are you laughing at?” A sharp voice broke through the crowd, silencing the cackling girls. “This isn’t a show! Get lost!”

You could hear their footsteps fade away as they scurried away from the scene. Once their footsteps faded away and you believed that you were alone, your head slowly lifted.

Your glassy eyes noticed a hand in front of your face and traveled up the arm, growing wide when they landed on a handsome face.

“Are you alright?” He asked softly, lips tugged down in concern.

You swallowed hard, hands clenching around the dress. Of all the people to witness such an embarrassing moment, why did it have to be such a gorgeous boy?

Your eyes started to pool with tears once more, unable to hold them back this time. They trailed down your reddening cheeks, dropping from your chin and to the ugly yellow cloth that you were forced to wear. Your hands reached up to cover your face but froze when you felt a warm hand on your cheek.

Your eyes locked with intense brown eyes as he wiped your cheeks free of the troublesome tears.

“Please don’t cry,” he murmured softly, his lips tugged down into a frown. “You’re the recent transfer student, right? Y/N?”

You could only nod, too embarrassed to trust your voice.

“It’s nice to meet you. If you need help with anything, let me know, okay?”

You blinked in confusion. Why was he being so nice to you? Hadn’t he heard the rumors? You were just a lowly orphan, a commoner, not worth his time. “Why…” your voice cracked as expected and you flushed, turning your gaze to the ground. You cleared your throat and tried again. “Why are you being nice to me?”

He cocked his head to the side, brown bangs brushing his forehead from the movement. He stared at you for a moment in confusion before smiling at you softly. “I know what it’s like.”

“Eh?”

“My family’s not rich. I got into Ouran on a scholarship, so I know how trying these kids can be.”

“W-Wow. You must be really smart.”

He chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head. “Y-Yeah, I guess so.”

Climbing to his feet, he extended his hand to you once again. You didn’t hesitate to slide your hand into his and he easily pulled you to your feet, leaning down to pick up your books.

His eyes glanced over at the clock. “It’s that late already? I’m sorry, but there’s somewhere I need to be.”

“W-Wait!” You cried, grabbing onto the sleeve of his jacket. “Y-Y/N…”

“Ah,” Realization dawned on him that he had not properly introduced himself. He smiled, turning around to face you, his eyes closed and head cocked to the side. “Haruhi. Haruhi Fujioka.”

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Several months passed by and you found yourself growing increasingly dependant on Haruhi. He was always there, standing up for you and helping you with anything that you needed. He was so sweet and kind to you… you honestly didn’t know how to react to him.

All you knew was that you were terrified to lose your first and only friend.

You stopped walking, eyes staring blankly at the floor.

Did you even have any right to call him your friend? You haven’t known each other for very long and you hadn’t even spoken to him outside of school. You doubted that he felt the same overbearing attachment that you did. After all, he probably had a whole group of friends.

It scared you.

You shook your head and continued walking.

You weren’t focusing on who or what was around you and you ended up roughly bumping into someone’s shoulder. With your head bowed low in embarrassment, you quickly muttered out an apology before continuing on your way. The boy had no intention of letting you leave, though, and grabbed your arm roughly, fingers digging into your skin. He whipped you around, shoving you against the wall.

Your eyes grew wide in fear of the malicious look swirling in his eyes.

A grin took over his lips as his eyes raked over your body. “You’re not the hottest thing out there, but you’ll do.”

“W-What?” You managed to squeak out, only to cringe at how weak it came out.

“You have to pay for bumping into me.”

“I-I said sorry!”

“Not good enough.” He pressed his body against yours, back digging painfully into the wall. It hurt, but you didn’t have the strength to cry out.

Your eyes frantically searched the hallway, pleading for someone, anyone, to help you, but it was completely deserted.

He laughed at you, amusement dancing in his eyes. His hands grabbed onto your wrists, forcing them against the wall before encasing them with one hand. “School’s over, babe. There’s no one here to save you~” He purred into your ear.

A whimper of fear left your lips as you begged him to let you go, but this action only seemed to turn him on. He pressed his hips against yours.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?!”

The male was shoved away from you. As soon as his grip was gone, you slid down to the floor, your legs no longer able to hold up your weight. The assailant stumbled back a few steps but somehow managed to maintain his balance, eyes narrowed at your savior.

“Fujioka,” he spat, angrily.

The name made your head snap up.

Haruhi stood before you protectively, an angry look marring his face. “How can you call yourself a man when you have to force yourself onto a girl? It’s despicable!”

The un-named boy took a menacing step forward, but he didn’t make it far before he was flat on his back and out cold. You blinked dumbly, ‘What just happened?’

Your eyes shifted to a tall boy who stood over your attacker. Beside him was his polar opposite, clinging to a stuffed pink bunny. You tried to get a better look at the odd pair, but Haruhi’s face obstructed your view.

“Are you okay, Y/N?” He questioned, brown eyes shining with worry. You didn’t respond, instead throwing yourself into his arms, face buried into the crook of his neck. Tears streamed down your face, no longer able to be held back.

Haruhi wrapped his arms around your shaking form, one hand petting her head as he whispered comforting words into your ear.

You felt like such a child, growing even more embarrassed being able to sense the gaze of the other two boys. You clutched Haruhi’s shirt in your fist, knowing that you had to look so lame right now.

Haruhi didn’t complain as you wrinkled his shirt. He didn’t complain at the strange feeling of his neck being soaked with tears. He simply held you tight until your sobbing finally died down.

When your body finally obeyed your command to stop shaking, you slowly pulled away from him, making sure to keep your head low so that your hair shadowed your face. “I-I’m sorry,” you sniffled, attempting to stand. It proved more difficult than you had originally thought since your legs had fallen asleep. Haruhi ended up supporting you. “I-I’m so sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for, Y/N.” He told you, but his words went unheard. You continued apologizing until your exhausted body gave into the shock and you slipped into unconsciousness. Haruhi struggled with the dead weight, almost hitting the floor if not for the stoic third year.

“Thank you, Mori-senpai.”

He nodded without uttering a word, lifting you into his arms. Deciding to take you to the host club room so you could rest, the three started off down the hall, not sparing a glance to the unconscious male. Haruhi was worried about what Tamaki and the twins would do, but right now, he didn’t have any other choice.

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You felt warm and safe, a feeling you hadn’t experienced since you were a small child. It felt absolutely lovely, like you were floating on air.

Shifting slightly, your eyes fluttered open and two identical faces entered your view, hovering just inches from your own face. You tried to jump back, but whatever object you were lying on prevented you from making it very far. Hastily rubbing your eyes, you looked again, still seeing double.

“She’s awake,” they chimed in unison before backing away.

You felt as if you could breathe again, but it didn’t last long.

Your personal space was invaded once more, this time by a blonde who took your hand into his own. “Good morning, hime.” His lips brushed your knuckles and your face flushed at the attention, head beginning to spin.

‘Good morning?’, you echoed in your head, eyes sliding closed. ''‘How long was I out? Where am I? And more importantly, who are these people surrounding me?!’''

“Will you knock it off? You’re scaring her!” Your hand was released as the blonde was pushed away, leaving Haruhi to kneel down beside the couch, brown eyes shimmering with worry. “Don’t be afraid, Y/N. You’re safe here.”

Your eyes cracked open to peer at Haruhi’s smiling face. Your heart was pounding in your ribcage, eyes clouding over with tears. Was this what it felt like to have someone who cared? What it felt like to have a friend? You felt cared for and you finally didn’t feel alone. You sniffled, burying your face into your knees.

Tamaki shot up, his hands weaving through his blonde locks and eyes wide in distress. “W-Why are you crying, hime?!”

“Way to go, tono -” Kaoru piped up from behind him.

“- You made Y/N cry.” Hikaru finished beside his twin.

“Eh?!” The blonde squeaked. “W-What did I do?!”

Haruhi sighed at the loud volume, opening his mouth to scold them but he never got the chance. You flung your arms around his neck, burying your face into his chest.

“Haruhi?” You called softly, voice slightly muffled by the fabric of his shirt.

“Yes, Y/N?” His arms wrapped protectively around your body, hand resting atop your head.

“Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For everything. You… you’re the first friend I ever had and I… I owe you a lot.”

The brunette laughed, ruffling your hair. “You don’t owe me anything. You’re a nice person, and I’m happy to be your friend.”

You smiled for the first time in many years. A real, genuine smile that made your face light up and heart flutter with happiness. “I love you, Haruhi!”

“I love you, too.” He smiled back.

You buried your face farther into his warm chest before pausing.

Something wasn’t right here.

You blinked dumbly up at him. “Haruhi?”

“Hmm?”

“Are you a girl?”

The whole room grew tense, the other host members froze in their spot with wide eyes and mouths gaping open. They started to deny the accusation, but Haruhi cut them off, “I am.”

“Haruhi!” Tamaki cried, clutching his hair tightly.

You simply blinked in response. “Okay.”

They stared at you in shock as you rested your head back on Haruhi’s chest, a content smile plastered on your face. To you, it didn’t matter if Haruhi was a male or female, she was your friend that had been there for you since the first day you met, and to you, that’s all that mattered.