Saturdays with the Ice Queen

A/N: Hey, there! Have you ever read Tuesdays with MOrrie by Mitch Albom? No? Go READ it! It's really, really, really, good! That's where I got the inspiration in writing this story. Well, the title says it all, but every chapter is supposed to revolve around a single core. Chapter1 is about...well, you guessed it: MONEY.

Okay, then, here it is.
I hope you'll enjoy it. If not, then let me know alright? R&R everyone! :D

Chapter 1: The First Saturday: M O N E Y

"Hotaru!"

The raven-haired Alice stopped on her tracks, pulling out her gun just in time when she turned to see her best friend throwing herself to her.

BAKA! BAKA! BAKA! BAKA!

There was a quiet pause as the smoke from Hotaru Imai's Baka gun v.5.109 subsided, and she raised an eyebrow when Mikan miraculously got to her feet and stuck a tongue at her. Sure enough, humans develop a perfect self-preservation thing when subjected to danger repeatedly over the years. The Alice genius's eyebrow twitched. Was that fact for humans or animals? There were times she honestly doubted what category her bestfriend falls.

"You're so mean, Hotaru!"

"What're you yelling about, baka?"

Almost as fast as Mikan recovered, her annoyed expression switched to a happy grin as she hooked their arms. "Nothing. I just missed you."

Hotaru smirked, for no exact reason at all. Since Mikan and the Black Cat got together, moments like this weren't so often as they were before. It's not like she got completely forgotten—she'd kill Hyuuga Natsume if that happens—it's just that Mikan's world revolves around another entity, not just hers anymore.

"It's Saturday." Hotaru suddenly said, her face calm and indifferent as usual. "I bet you're going out again."

Even as years had passed, Mikan still found herself blushing at the statement. "Uh, yes." She replied, then leaned closer to Hotaru as she grinned. "You?"

"What me?" A hand went to Mikan's face. "Get your stinky breath away from my face, idiot."

Mikan frowned, and then managed a really annoying shrewd smile. "Aren't you gonna go out with someone today?"

BAKA! BAKA! BAKA! BAKA!

"Oh, look. There's your prince." Hotaru casually blew the smoke from her gun and kept it away before Mikan could throw herself on her again. Then her eyebrow twitched. "Your princes, I mean."

"Two?" Mikan got up to her feet, looked around, and immediately forgot her injuries. "Oh, it's Ruka-pyon." She turned to the two guys few yards away from them and waved.

Hotaru Imai watched the two guys as she and Mikan took their time walking. Hyuuga Natsume was looking at them, his hands shoved on his pants. The other guy was sitting on the bench in front of her bestfriend, looking quite flustered as the Black Cat muttered something and smirked.

It was quiet for a moment, and Hotaru Imai almost appreciated it if not for the smile creeping up on Mikan's face. "What now, Baka?"

Biting her gum, Mikan couldn't help but break into a wide grin. "Ruka-pyon's your prince, Hotaru, not mine."

And Hotaru found herself regretting that she listened. "Do you want to get hit again?"

"No! B-but…" Death glares. Mikan stuck another tongue at her before looking away again. She paused; and when Hotaru's glares died, looked back to her bestfriend again. "I just think it's so fitting."

"Shut up."

Mikan sighed and looked away. It was quiet for a moment, both of them sorting their thoughts as they took no hurry walking towards the two guys. Hotaru thought about what Mikan meant, and dropped it immediately like some explosive. Those things weren't her greatest concerns now that they're only a year before graduating. Her future's knock on the door's getting louder and louder; and as much as possible, she couldn't waste a neuron for anything other than that.

Mikan glanced at her ever so quiet bestfriend, leaned closer to her face, and smiled. "I just want you to know Hotaru…" She said, enough for both of them to hear. "If I were to choose a guy whom I'd trust you with, it will be Ruka-pyon."

Hotaru met the brunette's chocolate brown eyes, paused, and blinked.

BAKA! BAKA! BAKA! BAKA!

This time though, Mikan kissed the ground longer than she did the previous attack. They were now a couple of meters away from where the guys were, and Natsume stared at the poor Alice sprawled on the ground. He glanced at the Ice Queen. "Nice job."

For just a second her eyes met the blonde's blue ones and Mikan's words echoed in her mind again. '…it will be Ruka-pyon' ––"Her virus is getting stronger." Hotaru muttered, looking away.

"Oww, Hotaru!" Mikan shot up to her feet. "You really shouldn't hit people like that!" As if to prove how fast her recovery is, she turned and stuck a tongue at the Black Cat. "And I heard what you just said, Natsume!" Then before she could forget, she turned to the blond guy sitting on the bench, a small smile on his face. "Oh, hi, Ruka-pyon!"

Ruka smiled. "Hello, Mikan."

"You really don't need to shout, idiot."

Mikan pouted at her bestfriend, and started to babble about endless things and this and that.

Ignoring the brunette, Natsume turned to Ruka. "We'll go now."

"Okay."

"Come on, Polka."

"And you shouldn't be—wh-what?" Mikan blinked, refocusing on the now impatient Natsume. "Where are we going?" But Natsume was already pulling her away, not saying anything. Managing to look back to the two they left alone, Hotaru was slightly surprised when Mikan waved at the blond instead. "Hey, Ruka-pyon! Take care of Hotaru for me, alright?"

It was completely quiet now. The wind blew and everything in the high school ground seemed resting. Ruka could still feel the blood on his face as he watched Mikan and Natsume walk away, Mikan's last statement echoing in his skull as though in a cave. It was cool and shady, an unusual afternoon, he figured. And he proved himself right when the Ice Queen turned to him.

They just stared at each other for a moment, eyes boring down on the other. Ruka gulped, feeling the shiver down his spine. He'd known Hotaru Imai for years now; she'd become an acquaintance, a friend. But there's always been some kind of invisible wall around her that makes her invulnerable—something that somehow makes her off limits.

But now as he looked into her eyes, he felt like he's being watched by some foreign entity and he couldn't do something about it. Patiently waiting, he watched her mouth gracefully move as she spoke. "Let's go."

"W-where are we...?"

"You're taking care of me this afternoon, right?"

His voice seemed stuck on his throat as he digested her words. What was he supposed to say at that anyway? Either because he lost control of his own body with the bombardment of his brain by her statement, or because he simply didn't have any choice at all, he stood up. Hotaru Imai's eyebrow twitched, quite surprised when she didn't hear a tinge of protest, and her smirk seemed to widen a bit.

Or maybe it was just his imagination.

He had no idea how he got himself to this, as he walked beside the Ice Queen, he had a weird feeling telling him it was a bad idea. He sighed. It's so not like he had a choice. Looking at the brighter side, it's not like it's the first time he'd shop with her…well, thinking about it, he gulped when he realized it was indeed the first time he'd shop with her without Mikan, or Natsume, or the others. Like…alone with her. But he couldn't just back down, now, could he?

The Ice Queen stopped on the first store, and he almost tripped on her when he didn't notice. Clearing his throat, he looked up. "MCHL Electronics." He mumbled almost absentmindedly, and immediately followed when Hotaru went inside.

The store was empty with costumers, but filled with things like…well, he really didn't know what they were. There was one that looked like an empty box made of metal—maybe it's some sort of chassis or something. There were wounds of wires and jacks and other things he couldn't recognize hanging on the wall. It was pretty packed, the store, and he wondered how Imai could actually know what to buy.

Hotaru went to the counter, pulling out a list. He could've just stayed there on his spot, quiet and waiting, but then he found himself walking closer to stand beside her. She didn't even glance at him, but if it wasn't his imagination, he noticed her stiffen. But the tables were reversed when the Ice Queen pulled out a few hundreds from a thick bundle of money from her bag, and as much as he tried to avoid it, Ruka Nogi found himself staring. When she met his eyes for a second, he immediately looked away, casually clearing his throat. Hotaru folded the cash neatly, and pulled out her list again. She could almost feel his eyes on her as she stared at piece of paper. The blond had grown a lot taller over the years, and now she had to literally look up to him just to send the daggers.

"Spit it out, Bunny Boy."

He blinked, feeling the blood run up to his face. "I-I was just wondering where…" He mumbled, trying to avoid her purple orbs as he sorted his thoughts. "Where you get so much money."

"Savings." Hotaru replied, looking back to the list. Suddenly a smirk crept up and she glanced at him before looking around the store. "And a whole lot from your pictures, of course."

First blow. Ruka bit his gum and tried to ignore what he just heard. "What're you going to buy anyway?" He was now looking at the things hanging across the counter when Hotaru literally rubbed the list on his face. "H-hey!"

Pulling it away, Hotaru stared at the piece of paper as if nothing happened. "I'll be needing lots of things." She muttered, as if speaking to herself instead. "Lots and lots of things so I can work on you more efficiently."

Second blow. His eyebrows furrowed, and he couldn't help but look at her quickly as he processed that. "What?"

"New inventions." She turned to him, her face calm but her eyes obviously amused. "New business, probably. But pretty much centered on you, I guess. You're a classic bestseller, you know that?"

Last straw. It was good that there were other costumers because now he lost it. "We're a year away from graduation, a-and you're thinking of another business strategy to make my life miserable?"

She blinked. "Pretty much."

Ruka Nogi felt the blood rushing up to his face in rage. "Haven't you gotten enough already?"

Hotaru stared at the now angry blond, thinking of the next thing he'd do. She honestly wasn't so affected with his outburst. At the back of her head, she was thinking about how beautiful he still looked even when turning red like an overripe tomato.

"Hello, Ms. Imai."

Both of them looked up at the bearded bulky man slowly approaching them. Ruka let out a labored sigh and looked away, still fuming. Taking a deep breath, he tried to calm his heart down. The man tapped the counter and seemed to pause when he looked at the blond. A father-ish smile suddenly crept up.

"Same orders?" He said, that smile still on as he turned to Hotaru, obviously unknowing of the little scene before he came.

"Yes." She replied. "And this." She held out her list, pointing at one item and the other so calmly no one would think anything wrong.

The man nodded, looking at the list as if memorizing them. "Okay. We have them." Pushing the list back to her, he looked at Ruka, who tried his best not to look like a bullied kid. "It's nice to know someone finally comes here with Ms. Imai. She's been our number one costumer since you guys were ten, and she's always alone when she comes here, you know."

That wasn't supposed to cancel out his rage, but hearing it from another person felt somehow different. The blond opened his mouth to say something, and then closed it again.

"Michel." Hotaru suddenly cut in, finally breaking the awkwardness with her strictly business mode.

"Ah, yes." Michel smiled at her apologetically. "Please wait for a while."

"Thanks."

It was quiet now, the store's large ceiling fan humming. It really shouldn't have affected him, Michel's statement, but when he stood dumbfounded at that moment, all he could think about was Natsume's remark back on the bench while watching the best friends walking towards them. I can read you like an open book, Ruka. You're starting to like her. But then with all that's going on now, that's hardly true. He had no idea how Natsume thought about that; all he knew was that when Hotaru Imai blackmails him, his feeling is far from liking.

"Just so you know, Bunny boy." Hotaru broke the silence. "I'm not doing it simply to make your life miserable. My time is so precious to waste it for that reason alone."

"Then why does it feel like it?" He snapped, quickly looking at her.

She shrugged; her face nonchalant. "Then that's unfortunate."

Ruka thought about all the blackmailing he got from the Ice Queen; the chases and the yelling; the threats and death glares he received every time he managed to get the negatives. When the digital camera found its way to the market, and the negatives weren't necessary anymore, those were his worst times; Hotaru would simply flaunt his pictures every chance she had.

"Are you happy with that? Is money that important?" He said, his temper not subsiding. "Like it's the only thing you can ever think about? To cause other people's distress because you simply want it? Money? Sometimes I wonder how greedy you can get."

Of course, he regretted it as soon as it came out of his mouth. He didn't really shout, he didn't need to; but he knew she heard it perfectly. Neither said anything for a while, and her silence made him wince.

Folding the piece of paper, Hotaru Imai crossed her arms on the counter nonchalantly. "Then I suppose you don't find it important." Her eyes flashed on him, and with the guilt welling up on him, her calm and cold eyes were the last thing he wanted now. "You sound like money doesn't matter. So you don't eat?" Ruka felt his face warming as he listened, completely dumbfounded. "I don't mind causing other people distress if that 'other people' is you. My reasons don't matter, and I don't owe you any explanation for my actions. And people get greedy, not just for money. And it is that important. Now if you think otherwise…" She paused, her stare unwavering. "…then educate me."

Ruka looked away, feeling ashamed and embarrassed and lost and confused and all other things.

"You don't know what to say because you were born rich."

His neck snapped at that as he quickly turned to her. "What?"

"I know things." She said, her face as emotionless as her voice. "And as it appears to me, you don't."

He was about to say something when Michel came back. "Here you go, Ms. Imai." He said, holding up the bags onto the counter with a quiet thud. "Come back again."

Pushing the cash towards Michel, Hotaru turned her heels without a word and went out of the store, leaving the flustered blond behind with the two heavy bags and a confused man. Michel turned to Ruka, who pursed his lips and quietly carried the bags and went out of the store.

The next few hours were torture. Hotaru would buy this and that, and then casually look at her list before turning to another store to buy things simply to make his load heavier. He was already carrying three bags of different weights, "more important than your life" kinds of things he couldn't afford not to be careful. Every moment of it was torture, plus the fact that he's doing it as a punishment for simply speaking out his mind. Did he really do something bad? Didn't he just…tell her how he really felt like, for years?

But then deep in his mind he knew it was somehow wrong, snapping at her like that. There was a tugging sensation in the pit of his stomach, and the bitter taste of guilt lingered in his mouth. He knew he did something wrong. And with this punishment, he figured that 'something wrong' was an understatement.

Sure, he had every right to hate her every time she would rub the embarrassing pictures in his face, but not once had he stopped to think about her reasons. Sure, she's greedy; she once said that 'money is the prime thing in the world', but what if she's not all that at all? Looking over the Alice quietly walking ahead of him, he found himself searching for answers, suddenly trying to understand. Mustering all that's left of his courage, Ruka found his voice and turned to her.

"Do you…a-always spend this much?" He paused, glancing away for the second when she met his eyes. "I-I mean, for your inventions."

Hotaru didn't say anything for a moment. Looking back to her list, she wondered why Ruka Nogi suddenly cared—after insulting ranting about his miserable life. Ruka gulped back his curiosity, thinking that maybe he shouldn't be asking things after insulting her.

Just when he was about to look away, Hotaru replied. "Yes."

He blinked.

"Usually more, when I try to make a really good one."

"Your inventions are all good."

Either to make sure if he's joking or simply messing up with her, Hotaru risked a glance and she saw the innocent glint in his eyes as he looked away and dropped the subject. She knew how good all her inventions are, but she just didn't know how well it sounded when he said it. She perfectly knew he was simply trying to make up for his rude feat back in Michel's store, but though she hated to admit, that compliment didn't sound like any she'd ever received.

They were quietly walking on the street, a foot of distance between them. Risking a glance, Hotaru Imai noticed that calm expression in his face as he repositioned his grip on the bags he was forced to carry; an expression that though she didn't want to admit, she found somewhat difficult to read. He was completely silent since the compliment, and she thought it was better that way—or they'd end up arguing again.

Thinking about it, she really shouldn't be bothered about the guy's weird silence. It's not like Ruka Nogi talks to her like Mikan does; or Iinchou does; or any other person does. It's not like he talks to her the way he talks with Mikan.

Her eyebrow twitched. Since when did she care about that?

"Can I ask you something?"

"You already did."

Ignoring the cold reply, Ruka paused and sorted his thoughts. "H-how often do you go shopping like this?"

"Like this." Hotaru repeated flatly, as if pinning a point.

"I-I mean…this many." Ruka replied, unconsciously holding the bags up and down as if weighing them. "They're heavy."

Casually pulling out her list, the Ice Queen stared at it as she thought about his effort in trying to start a conversation. "I usually run out of supplies every other week; with all the demands of the investors. I need to fill my stocks almost every Saturday."

Ruka couldn't help but look at the young lady beside him, thinking about the loads of work she had to do all at the same time. "And you do this alone? Just like what Michel said."

It was her time to look at him now, and he suddenly felt his back stiffen at the sudden meeting of the eyes. "Yes."

"Wh-why? I-I mean…you never asked for help?" He stammered, quiet surprised of his own reaction to this. "I-I'm sure Mikan would definitely help you…i-if you asked."

Hotaru thought about how all of a sudden Mikan was part of the topic; looking away, she pushed the thought aside and replied, "Every person has a cross of her own to carry; and this is mine. I don't want to waste other people's time."

Ruka found himself dumbfounded for a moment. He really hadn't thought about that; all he knew was that Hotaru Imai's an Alice genius, Sakura Mikan's bestfriend, a very bad enemy, and the blackmailer of his life. He really didn't think about the other side; about her other than the Hotaru Imai everyone knew. Now that it crossed his mind, he found himself regretting that he didn't care so much about it before. He regretted that he even insulted her.

"A-and you…" He muttered, his brows slightly furrowing at an impossible image. "You carry all these every time you do this shopping?"

For some reason Hotaru found herself smirking, their quarrel completely bypassed now. "Why? You think I'm weak?"

Now he really had to be careful. "No. It's just…" He mumbled, feeling like every word he'd spit out would explode like a bomb. "I…I can't imagine h-how you can possibly manage."

She didn't reply at that, but when he glanced at her, her smirk seemed wider.

The sun was almost setting as they went out of the last shop; and Ruka's arms didn't feel so young anymore. Taking a deep breath, the blond Alice turned to the Ice Queen.

"Are we done?"

Hotaru went under the shade of a huge tree by the park, Ruka trailing behind her. Glancing at her list, she nodded. "Let's go back."

Hotaru turned her heels to go, but stopped when he didn't move. Looking back, she raised an eyebrow at the suddenly flustered blond. "H-hey, Imai…" Hotaru patiently waited, quietly watching him sort his thoughts. Then Ruka looked up to her. "I'm sorry."

"You didn't do anything."

"B-but I said things. I-I called you…" He gulped, glancing back down.

"I didn't have to hear it from you; I know what people think of me. And I don't care."

"B-but…" His fists clenched on the bags. "Just…I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean to…b-but you're just so—"

He was tired, ashamed, and confused; but for some reason, when he risked a glance, her lips curved up to a knowing smirk, confusing him even more. "I know."

"I'm sorry."

"Good."

It was quiet now; and the wind seemed cooler as the sky slowly turned slightly orange. Hotaru watched him staring at the concrete for the tenth second now, and she sighed. "Let's go back."

It took him a second to look finally look at her, and manage a weak smile. "You want some ice cream?"

She blinked. Staring at him, she found herself dumbfounded.

For some reason, his smile widened. "Come on." He said, half-turning towards the opposite direction. "It's my treat."

It was a moment he didn't plan; something that he just decided to do. He perfectly knew an ice cream wouldn't slash out any of her loads, nor make her forget about his insult; but he wanted to at least do something. Stupid as it sounded, he wanted to start with the simplest of things. Like carrying these heavy bags, for example; or quietly walking with her as she ever so quietly went from one shop to another. Or ignore her snaps once in a while. It's not easy, doing what he knew he really didn't want to do in the first place; but it's not that hard, too. And thinking about it, as Hotaru completely turned to walk beside him with that stoic expression on her face, he found himself sighing in relief.

He had no idea what led him to this thinking. Maybe it's just a late realization. Or maybe it's an accident. Or maybe because of the lingering feeling of guilt. Or that maybe Hotaru Imai's a witch. He didn't know; but he would have plenty of Saturdays left to find out.

A/N: THere! What do you think about it? Is it bad? SO bad? Did you like it? Please let me know by leaving a review! Flames? Go! It'll help. though it will hurt. lol.
I'll try to update soon. See ya! :D