"I'm sorry Miss Haruhi. But this school body read what they read. We can't take the twins' excuses." He said. He didn't sound mad or upset with her, but she could tell that he was looking down on her.

"You don't even know them," she muttered under her breath.

Kyouya smiled again and patted her on the top of her head.

"I am not going to give up on you, Haruhi. I will be your friend. But I'm not going to put up with all of this twin nonsense everytime we meet." He said. Then, he turned around and walked away, just as fast and unexpected as when he appeared.

********

"Hikaru, what did you get for number eleven?" Kaoru asked, pointing to the complicated equation in his math textbook. Hikaru looked over his shoulder at the problem and then turned back to his notebook to check his answer.

"I got negative two point three repeating. But that's probably wrong." He sighed. Kaoru shook his head.

"No, that's what I got, too." He agreed. He closed the textbook and rubbed his forehead.

The twins were doing homework in the deserted music room three for free period. They had always hung out there whenever they had a free class or something like that. Nobody ever came around there, so it was basically like their secret hideout.

"Can we be done with math? I don't want to do the other five pages." Kaoru groaned, tossing his notebook across the room. Hikaru grinned and walked over to pick it up.

"We don't need to do the other five pages. We just need to do five more problems, okay?" He shoved it back into his hands. Kaoru rolled his eyes and slumped back onto the couch he was sitting on. Music room three might have been deserted, but it still had all of the throw rugs, chairs, couches, lamps, tables, and pillows that it came with. It even had supplies to prepare tea. It wasn't your normal music room.

Hikaru opened up their textbook and began to read off the next problem, but was interrupted by the door opening. Kaoru yelped and fell off of the couch, and Hikaru hid behind his chair.

"Hello?" They heard a familiar voice say. Kaoru face palmed and stood up.

"Why do you always find us wherever we go?" He asked. Haruhi smiled a little and stepped further into the room. She shut the door.

"I didn't know you two were in here. I was just looking for a quiet place to study."

Hikaru stood up and smiled a little. He scratched his neck and picked up the textbook he had dropped.

"Yeah, that's why we're here, too." He said.

Haruhi sat down on one of the chairs and pulled out her books.

"I hope you don't mind if I stay," she turned to face them, "because I don't have anywhere else to go."

Kaoru shrugged.

"I guess you can, but keep quiet about it." He told her. Hikaru nodded in agreement.

Haruhi was about to say that her only friends were a year ahead of her, and didn't really care one way or another about where she went during free period, but then realized that Tamaki and Kyouya weren't the types of people the twins wanted her to be hanging out with.

"I won't," she promised, "I wouldn't have anyone to tell. Nobody talks to me, anyways."

She regretted saying the last part when she saw the their reactions. Both of their faces fell and she could tell that they felt guilty of depriving her of friends.

Haruhi tried to say something else to make them feel better, but all she ended up doing was just opening and closing her mouth.

"Haruhi, you don't need to hang out with us to make us feel better. You do know we are the reasons that nobody wants to hang out with you." Hikaru said softly.

Haruhi stared at him for a minute but then smiled.

"I'm hanging out with you because I want to. Everybody deserves friends, right?" She put a hand on Kaoru's arm. He looked up at her shamefully and then turned away.

"Not us," he whispered. "We're used to being lonley." Haruhi didn't think she was supposed to hear the last part, so she took away her hand and crossed her arms.

"That's bull crap." She snapped. The sudden change of the tone of her voice startled them, but they kept listening.

"Life isn't worth living if you're just going to look down on yourself. Of course you need friends. I'll be your friend from now on, even if you hate me for it." She pledged. Hikaru gave her a worried look.

"If you say so. But I've warned you once about the risks you're taking by hanging out with us, remember? I don't want to have to do that again." He said quietly. Haruhi nodded and whipped out a pencil.

"Can somebody help me out with the history homework?" She asked.

"No, we're working on math."

"I finished math, do you need help with it?"

"Kaoru does."

"Shut up!"

The rest of free period went by in what felt like five seconds. They all lost track of time, and finally Haruhi checked the wall clock.

"Guys, we're going to be late!" She warned, grabbing her bag. The twins ran after her and fortunately made it on time. It was math class, so the twins sat at their usual seats by the window.

The teacher walked in and instructed for them to take out last nights homework (which was what they were working in in free period). The teacher called on students who had their hands raised to give the answer to each problem.

"Who would like to read off number eleven?" He asked.

"Are you sure?" Hikaru asked. Kaoru nodded.

Very slowly, Hikaru and Kaoru each raised a hand and grimaced when they noticed all of the looks they were receiving. The teacher looked genually surprised.

"Y-yes, the Hitachiin brothers?"

They lowered their hands and held up their notebooks.

"We both got negative two point three repeating." They nearly whispered. Haruhi could tell that this was the first time in years that they had done something like this, because their eyes were glued to the floor and thier voices were shaking horribly.

She couldn't believe the terrible reactions they received from the other students. Some of them just stared with wide eyes. Others couldn't bring themselves to look at them, and the rest whispered unrepeatable things.

"Yes, that is correct. Thank you." The teacher said, writing the problem on the board.

"Those bastards shouldn't give out answers if they're the problem themselves." A boy sitting behind Haruhi whispered a bit too loudly. Everybody snickered.

Kaoru jerked back into his seat and clutched the hand he raised to his chest. He bit his lip to stop it from trembling. Hikaru took one look at his brother and his face twisted up in frustration.

"Why do you look so angry? We all know the two of you aren't capable of having feelings." A boy sitting in front of them teased, using a baby voice. This caused even louder laughter. The teacher didn't even seem to care, he just smirked and continued writing on the board. Haruhi clenched her fists and tried to keep calm.

Hikaru now looked livid. But Kaoru noticed that there was a small tear rolling down his cheek. Haruhi did, too.

"Hey, knock it off." She defended them, smashing her fist on the desk. Everyone turned to her with wide eyes. Right when the guy who first spoke was about to say something else, the bell rang and everyone left the room in an awkward silence. Haruhi didn't know where the twins had ran off to, because she had ended up leaving the room on her own.

"Oh, it's you," the boy stepped in front of her.

Haruhi narrowed her eyes and tried to sidestep him.

"Don't act so surprised. It's obvious that you've been following me." She snapped.

He smirked and shrugged.

"You caught me. I have a question for you."

Haruhi turned to face him, suddenly furious.

"Lemme guess, it's about how I know the twins, huh?! And why I said what I said in class, right?! We'll let me tell you something--"

"That's actually not what I wanted to discuss. But while we are on the topic of the Hitachiin twins, I'd advise you to steer clear of scum like them." He interrupted him.

"I've heard that people never talk to the twins because they're either intimidated or scared. But in class you and some others were bullying them. That doesn't make any sense to me." She refused to look at him.

"Yeah, most people are afraid if them. But there are other people in this school, Fujioka. Some just pity them and don't talk because they'd feel like they were on their level. Then they're are people like me. I just downright loathe them. You've heard about what they've done, right? And the nerve they have to walk around this school like they've forgotten about it." He started picking at his nails.

"First of all, they didn't do anything. And secondly, who even are you?" She asked. He looked up.

"I'm Akihiro. No need to adress me formally. The reason I came to talk to you in the first place was to ask you out. You're a very pretty girl, you know."

Haruhi was speechless.

"You truly think that I'd agr--"

"We would like it if you left her alone."

She heard familiar voices coming from behind her. She turned around and saw Hikaru and Kaoru both leaning against pillars. They had one hand each in a pocket, and they did look pretty intimidating.

"Oh. It's you. I'll be back for your answer, Fujioka. I'd better like it." He sent her a mischevious glance and then began to walk away.

"Stay away from that guy, got it?" Hikaru said, grabbing her shoulder.

"Yeah, he's bad news." Kaoru added.

Haruhi was still pretty shaken up by the whole thing, so she just nodded.

"Yes, of course. I would have never--"

"Are you okay?!" Kaoru blurted out, lifting her face so she was staring into his eyes. She could tell that he was holding back tears.

"O-of course!" She said, not knowing what brought this on. He didn't look convinced.

"Seriously? Nobody said anything to you?" Hikaru looked the same way as Kaoru did. She shook her head.

"Nobody other than him." She pointed back to Akihiro.

The twins nodded and straightened up a little. They started to walk away, but then they turned back around.

"You didn't have to do that you know." They were referring to what had happened in class. She stepped farward and took one hand from each of them in hers.

"You have to stop saying that. I did it because I wanted to. I did it for you." Haruhi walked farward, dragging both of them behind her as she went.

********

Sorry I couldn't update yesterday! I was so busy... :( Today I didn't feel well, so I couldn't fit in a double update. But, nevertheless, here is chapter 13!

Thanks for reading!