Episode 2

A Phone Call between Sisters

Haruhi's head felt like it was being compressed. She wasn't sure whether she should take some Tylenol or just go to bed, but whatever it was she needed to do it quick or she may very well flip the table she was sitting at. Her history textbook was laid out in front of her, innocently enough, but the brunette couldn't force herself to actually read the questions she was supposed to be answering. How could it be that it only took a single day in the company of the host club to ruin her entire study schedule?

Scowling, Haruhi dropped her pencil and fell onto her back, pulling a pillow over her face to muffle her screams. She needed to keep ahead in her studies or her scholarship would be revoked, but it was so hard to focus with the memories of her day running around in her head! And really, how exactly was she supposed to work knowing that she'd be dealing with those boys for the next three years?

Ring! Ring! Ring!

Haruhi gasped and sat up, her homework and studying problems almost completely forgotten as she scurried to her feet. The brunette rushed over to the telephone residing on the wall and answered it, knowing exactly who was calling.

"Nēchan!"

"Hey, Haru!"

Haruhi laughed and leaned her left side against the counter, grinning like a fool, "You called early!"

"Well, yeah. I have an hour before school starts, so I figured I'd use it to call you! And I felt like it was needed. Is Dad home?"

"No, he isn't. He'll be working until 8 for the rest of the week, too."

"Bummer. Oh well! Tell me how school went today! Have you made any friends yet? How's the homework load? Anything I have to watch out for?"

Haruhi bit her lip. How much should she tell her Onēsan? If Jin found out she was a member of the host club… how would she react? Let alone her finding out just how she'd been roped into that circus. Yes, Jin would want to know and she'd help out in any way that she could, but Haruhi felt like it was her responsibility. She was the one who broke the vase, she should be the only one who had to pay for it. It wouldn't be fair or right to drop an 8 million yen debt on her sister's shoulders while she's over 6,000 miles away.

"Haru? Is everything okay over there? Did something happen?"

"Hm? Ah, no. I'm just trying to find the right words to describe the place. First of all, everyone there is rich, and it's kind of scary. Honestly, they're all idiots." Jin giggled on the other side of the phone. "They have four huge library rooms with about every book you can imagine, but they don't take the 'no talking' rule very seriously, so that makes studying a little hard during the school day. The homework load is decent, I guess. Pretty much what you'd expect from high school, I would think."

"And have you made friends? Even idiots can be fun to hang around with every once in a while. Just take a look at all the people we hang out with now!"

"Er… well, the thing is… they all think I'm a boy."

She was answered with silence on the other end. Then:

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAA!"

Haruhi pulls the phone away from her ear as her sister laughs. She smiles, glad to have humored her, and waits patiently for her Onēsan to catch her breath long enough to speak. It takes a few minutes.

"W-wait. They seriously can't tell?"

"Well, remember when I told you that Eiichi got gum in my hair last week? And I chose to get it cut off?"

"Yeah... But you refused to send me a picture, so exactly how short of a haircut are we talking about here?"

"You're coming back in about a month, so you'll see it for yourself soon enough. Anyways, with my short hair, Ojiisan's glasses, and my brown sweater, they all think I'm a boy. I didn't feel bothered to correct them."

"Huh. Sounds like you. Anyways, back to my original question: have you made any friends?"

"Not yet, but I'm a part of a club now. They're the only ones who know I'm a girl and I think they want to keep it that way."

"Really? That's kind of weird. But are they nice?" Haruhi thought about it. Were they nice?

Tamaki-senpai was certainly kind when my bag was thrown into the pond and when Ayankoji attempted to accuse me of assaulting her. He's still an idiot, but yeah, he's nice. Kyoya-senpai… I'm not so sure about him yet. But if someone becomes Tamaki-senpai's friend, there must be some good in him. Hikaru and Kaoru are definitely troublemakers, and a little overbearing at times, but again, they can't be all bad. Honey-senpai is really nice to everyone, so there's no contest there. And Mori-senpai seems like a good guy. He did rescue me from Senpai's hug-of-death…

"Haru… Earth to Haru… You still there?"

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm still here. I was just thinking. The guys at the club are nice. They're probably the biggest idiots of them all, but they are nice. In their own way. But they all drive me up the wall, and I've only known them for a day! Honestly, they take the simplest things and come up with ridiculously big plans to solve them!"

"Wow, that sounds fun! Just don't shut them out too soon, okay? The people who can make an ordinary day into an adventure are the best kinds of people in my opinion!"

"That's because you haven't met these guys yet."

"Uh huh. I guess I'll just have to decide for myself when I come home."

"Uwah… h-hey, you don't have to meet them I mean they really aren't that big of a deal and I doubt they're your type of friends anyways I mean they're kind of boring and yet over the top at the same time why would you want to-"

"Hey, hey, hey, relax. Haru, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes! I'm fine!"

Haruhi's chest was rapidly rising and falling. While she didn't think Jin would have a problem with the host club, she wouldn't put it past the boys to attempt to woo her sister. Not only would that be weird, but it could end up embarrassing and making a bad situation worse. Haruhi knew it wasn't like she could keep them separated permanently, but perhaps she could make the transition smoother. Introduce one host at a time.

"Haru, if you really don't want me to meet them right now, then that's okay. I'll keep my distance if that's what you want, but I do want to hear more about these club members when I get back home, alright?"

And therein lies the reason Haruhi can tell her sister anything. No matter how obvious she made her discomfort or how clearly it appeared she was hiding something, Jin always knew when to back off of a problem and negotiate. She could always tell where to draw the line and when to start being an understanding role model.

"Thanks."

"No problem. Well, I have to make myself some breakfast and get to school, so I'm going to hang up now, okay?"

"Okay. Have a good day, Nēchan!"

"Goodnight, Haru!"

Boop. Boop.

Haruhi hung up the phone and let out a big sigh. An even bigger smile spread across her face as she headed back to the table and homework pile. She sat down, feeling as though her entire hectic day had never happen. There wasn't a single point of tension in her body and it felt great. Sure, tomorrow could be even crazier for all she knew, but until that happened she was just going to focus on her homework.

After all, it wouldn't be any good if she was kicked out of the Academy before her sister even arrived!